AI crash probe 'blames' pilot

India's probe into the Boeing 787 jet crash is increasingly focusing on deliberate pilot action as the probable cause, according to people familiar with the findings.

Investigators have ruled out mechanical failure and not found evidence of sabotage, leaving pilot action as the strongest line of inquiry.

A final report on the causes of the crash is expected to be issued by June, and if it lays clear blame on the pilot, it will likely receive backlash in India.

India’s probe into last year’s Boeing Co. 787 jet crash is increasingly homing in on deliberate pilot action as the probable cause, according to people familiar with the findings, marking a concession by authorities previously resistant to that scenario. Investigators have ruled out mechanical failure and not found evidence of sabotage either, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the findings aren’t yet public. This leaves pilot action as the strongest line of inquiry.

Regulation requires that a final report on the causes of the crash be issued by June — a year after the tragedy — and investigators plan to publish it ahead of that deadline, the people said. A trip to the US in December to analyze cockpit and flight data recordings marked one of the final stages of the investigation, they added.