A cockpit recording of the dialogue between the two pilots of the “Air India“ flight that crashed last month shortly after taking off from the Indian city of Ahmedabad en route to London supports the theory that the captain of the flight cut off the fuel supply to the plane's engines, a source briefed on the early assessment of the evidence by US authorities said. On this occasion, Reuters presents a brief background on the two pilots based on the preliminary investigation report and media reports, BTA reported:
CAPTAIN SUMET SABHARWAL
The 56-year-old pilot had a transport aircraft license, which was valid until May 14, 2026. He was authorized to fly as commander of several aircraft, including the “Boeing 787“, “Boeing 777 and “Airbus A310“. His total flying experience is 15,638 hours, of which 8,596 hours are on the “Boeing 787“.
Sabharwal called his family from the airport, assuring them that he would call them again after landing in London. A pilot who spoke briefly with him told Reuters he was a "gentleman".
FIRST OFFICER Clive Kinder
The 32-year-old pilot had a civil air traffic control license issued in 2020 and valid until September 26, 2025. He was authorized to fly the Cessna 172 and Piper PA-34 Seneca aircraft, as well as being the commander and co-pilot of the Airbus A320 and Boeing 787 aircraft. His total flight experience is 3,403 hours. Of these, 1,128 hours were as a co-pilot on a “Boeing 787“.
Since his school days, Kundera has been passionate about flying and in 2012 he started working as a pilot, Indian media reported, citing his relatives. He joined “Air India“ in 2017.
According to publications such as “Daily Mail“, “Daily Telegraph“, “New York Post“ and “Evening Standard“, medical records related to the flight commander are being examined amid widespread information that he may have suffered from depression and other mental health problems and may have deliberately crashed the plane in an attempt to commit suicide.