Families of four victims from the tragic Air India Flight 171 crash in June 2025 have filed a lawsuit in the United States against Boeing and aircraft parts manufacturer Honeywell, accusing the companies of negligence and a defective fuel cutoff switch design that allegedly caused the disaster, which claimed 260 lives.

The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed into the hostel block of B.J. Medical College just 32 seconds after takeoff on June 12, 2025, killing all 12 crew members and 229 of the 230 passengers on board.

An additional 19 people on the ground perished, with 67 others seriously injured in the impact and ensuing fire that reached temperatures of up to 1,500°C. Only one passenger survived, having been thrown from the aircraft.

India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) released a preliminary report on July 12, 2025, indicating the plane's normal takeoff was interrupted when both engines lost thrust seconds later due to the fuel control switches moving from "RUN" to "CUTOFF."

Cockpit voice recorder data captured the captain, Sumeet Sabharwal, asking co-pilot Clive Kunder, "Why did you shut off the fuel?" with Kunder responding, "I did not." The switches were returned to "RUN" within 14 seconds, triggering an automatic engine relight, but the aircraft had already entered a sharp descent, deploying the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) backup power system before slamming into the building.

The report ruled out bird strikes, confirming no avian activity in the area. The lawsuit, filed in Delaware federal court, contends that Boeing and Honeywell ignored known design risks in the fuel switches, leading to the unintended cutoff.

Both companies have not publicly commented on the suit as of September 18, 2025. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has previously affirmed the safety of the switches in Boeing aircraft, while assisting India's lead investigation alongside the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Air India, under Tata Group ownership since 2022, retired the flight number AI171 and established the AI-171 Memorial and Welfare Trust to support affected families. The crash marked the first fatal incident for the Boeing 787 since its 2011 debut, prompting temporary reductions in 787 and 777 operations.

Pilot groups have pushed back against suggestions of human error, emphasizing the combined 19,000 flight hours of experience held by the crew, who passed all pre-flight checks.

The ongoing AAIB probe continues to analyze black box data, with full findings expected to clarify the switch movement's cause amid calls for enhanced safety protocols in Dreamliner fuel systems.