swamp the internet, investigators examining the unfortunate incident believe the
aircraft’s emergency power generator was activated before crashing, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal, citing sources. The development comes amid the ongoing investigation into what is now the deadliest commercial aviation disaster in over a decade. The aircraft, enroute to London Gatwick Airport with 242 people on board, lost altitude seconds after takeoff. All but one passenger died, with over 30 fatalities reported on the ground.
The use of emergency power typically points to a serious failure in the aircraft’s main electrical systems. In the Dreamliner, this includes deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), a wind-powered device that generates electricity and hydraulic pressure to maintain control of the aircraft in the event of a total power or engine failure.
In commercial aircraft, emergency power systems like the RAT are not routinely deployed. They serve as last-resort backup mechanisms when both the main and auxiliary systems fail. These systems support essential operations such as avionics, flight controls, and communication.
Emergency power systems are designed to buy time and preserve safety when the unexpected occurs. Their activation, especially during critical phases like takeoff, signals a breakdown of normal systems.
Types of emergency power in aircraft include: If any of these systems are in use, particularly the RAT, it indicates that the aircraft experienced a significant failure, such as engine shutdown, electrical malfunction, or structural damage, that forced the crew to rely on backup systems to maintain control.
Air India Crash: Did an electrical failure doom the Dreamliner as both engines failed mid-air?The reported RAT activation raises concerns about whether those engines functioned as expected during takeoff. Investigators are now focusing on engine performance, power loss scenarios, and how the emergency systems were triggered.
India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said this week that there were no major safety findings in recent surveillance of Air India’s 787 fleet. However, the crash has led to renewed scrutiny of operational readiness and maintenance protocols.
Further, aviation expert Captain Steve Scheibner in his assessment of the June 12 Air India crash near Ahmedabad says the available evidence strongly supports a dual engine failure.
Captain Steve Scheibner, a former US Navy pilot with over 20,000 hours of flying experience, is widely respected for his in-depth aviation analysis and flight safety expertise. He had earlier outlined four possible causes of the crash. These included loss of power, fuel contamination, a bird strike, or a flap setting error. However, after examining sharper video footage released after the incident, his opinion has changed.
“In the middle of the circle, you see kind of a protrusion on the belly of the aircraft... just underneath that you see a little grey dot... that little grey dot is the RAT,” Scheibner said in a new video posted on YouTube. He was referring to the ram air turbine (RAT), a device designed to deploy automatically if both engines fail or if the aircraft loses all hydraulic or electrical systems.
“This is visual confirmation that the RAT deployed,” he said. The RAT is not meant to activate under normal flight conditions and only comes into action during extreme emergencies.
