The Air India Boeing 787 that crashed in Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff last year, killing 260 people, had suffered a long history of electrical and systems failures, a US non-government aviation safety watchdog has said in a whistleblower report submitted to the US Senate.
The aircraft, with tail number VT-ANB, had faced avionics, electronics and software faults, repeated tripping of circuit breakers, electrical surges and loss of electrical current, said the report submitted by the Foundation for Aviation Safety on January 12 to the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
The subcommittee is a bipartisan body that examines government efficiency and compliance with laws, and probes crimes, including fraud, that might impact health, welfare and safety.
The whistleblower report, citing what it described as “non-public information” about VT-ANB, said the problems extended across much of the aircraft’s 11-year operational life. Among the issues were burning and overheating of power distribution components and what the report described as a “serious” fire.
