YouTuber retracts comments citing ‘pilot error’ for Air India crash after widespread criticism: ‘They did a valiant job of trying to save that plane’

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At the beginning of his latest video itself, Captain Steeeve said, “I’m glad to say at this point that that has been put to bed. That did not happen. (After I made the statement) A lot of people said, ‘You are casting dispersions on those pilots, their training and their background.’ Not at all. I have the greatest and utmost respect for all my foreign pilot friends. These guys are absolutely geniuses. They are terrific at what they do.” He added, “Those guys earned what they were, and they did a valiant job of trying to save that aeroplane. They were really the heroes, and I wish it had turned out better.”

As per the YouTuber, according to last available visuals of the flight, 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, was deployed in the moments leading up to the crash. He also weighed in on the topic of what might have caused the engines to fail.

Pointing out that once they start functioning, the two turbine engines basically need ample air and fuel. He noted that RAT deployment could result from electrical or hydraulic failure. He speculated that due to the high temperatures in Ahmedabad that day, airflow might have been disrupted, potentially causing a “compressor stall”. He also suggested that fuel starvation, possibly due to contamination or vapour lock, could have played a role.

Previously, defending the pilots, YouTuber Flying Beast aka Gaurav Taneja had stated, “It’s very easy to blame the pilots when they are not there to defend themselves. Boeing and Air India both are big companies so leave them and let’s blame the pilot. Also, it gets easy to claim insurance if you blame it on the pilot. That is one more reason for big companies to not take it on themselves. Americans think Indian pilots aren’t very competent but that’s not the case.”