Flight 171: ‘They only had a few seconds. There were no good options’

Jon Ungoed-Thomas

News Reporter

Flight 171: ‘They only had a few seconds. There were no good options’

Engine failure or pilot error? Questions are mounting as the Air India disaster investigation begins

In the seconds before flight AI171 crashed on Thursday, killing 241 passengers and crew, Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and his co-pilot would have been bombarded with alerts.

A ground proximity system alert on the Air India jet would have repeatedly warned: “Don’t sink. Don’t sink. Don’t sink.” Systems warnings would have lit up the cockpit instrument panel.