The story so far: On February 1, 2026, an Air India flight (AI 132) scheduled from London Heathrow to Bengaluru was preparing for departure when the crew reported that one of the two fuel control switches on the Boeing 787-8 had moved to ‘Cutoff’. The incident came under intense scrutiny, as the fuel switches and their functioning are a key part of the ongoing investigation into the June 12, 2025 crash of Air India flight 171 (Ahmedabad-London Gatwick), also a Boeing 787-8.
What happened next?
As the left fuel control switch “slipped from Run to Cutoff”, the crew is said to have checked the switches by touching them. It was only in the third attempt that the switch remained in the ‘Run’ position.
Also read: Air India starts inspection of fuel control switches in its Boeing 787 planes
The crew decided to continue with the flight — a distance of about 8,000-plus kilometres — with no further incident.
