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I am writing this article to express my deep dismay and anguish at a series of articles that appeared in prominent mainstream media by a commentator, Capt Mohan Ranganathan, after the tragic AI-171 accident. Capt Ranganathan is a veteran airline pilot and instructor now retired for many years. In the absence of in-house domain experts, it is understandable that media would seek out subject matter experts in the wake of air accidents. That there was a void of information from official sources in the wake of this tragedy is also well understood. But there are ethical and professional red lines this commentator has crossed which merit a rebuttal in the interest of public safety.

Article 1, June 18, 2025: ‘A chance to rebuild the trust, restore faith in air travel’

In his first article on June 18 (six days after the crash), Capt Ranganathan wrote about TRP-hungry media channels and YouTubers who were “going overboard with theories about what caused the accident”. He should introspect if his opinion assuaged or compounded the general anxiety. He complained about rumours that are “flooding WhatsApp groups” and why “Boeing needs to address them” given the high stakes and “reliability of the Dreamliner”. It is not known on what basis he has given a clean chit to the Boeing Company so early in the process. His further writings only reveal a confirmation bias against the pilots who are no longer around to defend themselves.

After bemoaning wild speculation around the Dreamliner in the opening lines, Capt Ranganathan went on to float multiple pet theories of his own about aircraft performance calculations, runway length, takeoff run, bird hit, debris ingestion, critical engine failure, etc.—presumably after watching a grainy CCTV footage on loop. To buffer his unfounded theories, he offered an old anecdote from 1986 where an Indian Airlines B737 rejected takeoff after rotation (RTO) [Editor: An RTO is an emergency procedure for stopping an aircraft after it has commenced its take-off roll, using the remaining part of the runway to bring the plane to a halt.] His grouse that the crew were “crucified” for ‘rejecting’ takeoff … seems to underpin his contempt for the airline and infatuation with Boeing planes. To be clear, rejecting a takeoff after rotation is not ‘Hobson’s Choice’ as Ranganathan made it out to be. It is attempted mass suicide…

Article 2: June 27, 2025: ‘Delay in revealing details........

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