DISASTER MYSTERY

Doomed Boeing 787 Likely Had Emergency System Activated Before Deadly Crash

The Air India flight crashed less than a minute after takeoff, killing almost everyone on board and more on the ground.

Investigators believe an Air India Boeing 787 had its emergency-power generator activated when it crashed in Ahmedabad last week, killing all but one of the 242 people on board, according to the Wall Street Journal. The outlet reported that preliminary inquiries into the disaster indicate the aircraft’s ram air turbine (RAT)—a backup generator that can be triggered manually or automatically during severe system failures—may have been operating when the London-bound aircraft slammed into a dormitory for medical students less than a minute after takeoff. The jet reached an altitude of just 625 feet before it stopped transmitting location data. According to a Boeing 787 manual reviewed by the Journal, the RAT can activate if both engines fail, if all three hydraulic systems lose pressure, or if cockpit instruments lose power due to electrical faults. The findings are preliminary, and an investigation is ongoing, people familiar with the crash cautioned. Viswashkumar Ramesh, the sole survivor of the crash, described the aircraft freezing midair before it plummeted. He was seated by an emergency exit and escaped before the aircraft was engulfed in flames.