Families of four passengers killed in Air India flight 171 accident have filed a case against American aircraft manufacturer Boeing and technical company Honeywell. Family members allege that the aircraft crashed due to the negligence of companies in this accident and fuel cutoff switch. The aircraft crashed shortly after flying from Ahmedabad to London on June 12, in which a total of 260 people died.
Complaint in delaware superior court
In a complaint filed in the Delaware Superior Court on Tuesday, the families of the victims said that the locking mechanism of the fuel cutoff switch on Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner can be inadvertently closed or disabled. Due to this, fuel supply can stop and the thrust required for takeoff may be reduced.
The complaint alleged that Boeing and Honeywell, who built and established this switch, knew about the flaw despite the warning of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2018. FAA warned that locking mechanisms in many Boeing aircraft are in danger of being closed due to mistake.
Accused of negligence of companies
Family members alleged that the switch was directly placed behind the thrust lever, causing the fuel cutoff during normal cockpit operations. The complaint said, “Honeywell and Boeing did not take any concrete steps to stop this disaster.” Boeing refused to make any comment on Wednesday, while Honeywell also did not respond immediately.
260 people died in accident
In this accident, 229 passengers, 12 crew members and 19 people present on the ground were killed. Only one passenger could escape safely. Four killed passengers – Kantaben Dhirubhai Paghadal, Navya Chirag Paghadal, Kubebhai Patel and Babiben Patel have sought damages in the trial.
Investigation agencies have not reached the conclusion yet
Indian, British and American investigators have not been able to ascertain the real cause of the accident so far. In the preliminary report of the Indian Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, the confusion in the cockpit was described as the major problem before the accident. FAA said in July that the possibility of mistake in mechanical malfunction or fuel control is very low.
Disputed history of Boeing
Boeing has already faced legal and financial crises. After two deadly accidents of its 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019, the company did not get permission to fly its aircraft for 20 months and had to be legal and other expenses of more than $ 20 billion.

