Air India on Monday said it had grounded a Boeing 787 aircraft and alerted the aviation regulator after a pilot reported a possible defect in a fuel control switch on Air India Flight AI132, from London Heathrow to Bengaluru. The Safety Matters Foundation (SMF) warned that the malfunction mirrors a known failure mode that can trigger inadvertent engine shutdowns, the same cut-off risk now being examined in the Air India Flight AI171 crash which claimed 260 lives on June 12, 2025. The airline said it was involving Boeing on a priority basis and maintained that earlier fleet-wide inspections of fuel control switches had found no issues. SMF, however, said the incident raised serious questions about the depth of those checks and whether a long-flagged safety warning is resurfacing across the Dreamliner fleet.”We are aware that one of our pilots has reported a possible defect in the fuel control switch of a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. After receiving this initial information, we have grounded the said aircraft and are involving the OEM to get the pilot’s concerns checked on a priority basis. The matter has been communicated to the aviation regulator, DGCA. Air India had checked the fuel control switches on all Boeing 787 aircraft in its fleet after a directive from the DGCA, and had found no issues,” an Air India spokesperson said.The SMF said the malfunction was reported on February 2 during Air India Flight AI132 and during engine start, the left engine fuel control switch reportedly failed to remain locked in the RUN position on two attempts and instead moved towards CUTOFF.Under specific conditions, SMF warned, such behaviour could result in an unintended engine shutdown during flight. The foundation said the incident closely matches warnings issued by the US Federal Aviation Administration in 2018, when it cautioned operators that certain fuel control switches on Boeing 787 aircraft could malfunction in this exact manner and recommended inspection and replacement of affected components.SMF also flagged the backdrop of the ongoing probe into the June 12, 2025 crash of Air India Flight AI171, which involved a Boeing 787 and is examining whether a fuel control switch moving to CUTOFF played a role. While saying that no direct link was being alleged, the Foundation said repeated issues involving a critical control system on the same aircraft type demand the highest level of scrutiny.”From day one after the AI-171 crash, we have been insisting that all Boeing 787 aircraft be checked for electrical system faults. We wrote repeatedly to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the DGCA, stating that the fuel control switches likely moved automatically due to an electrical malfunction of the TCMA, as seen earlier in the AI-161 incident. The 787-800 is also vulnerable to water seepage into the main electronic bay, risking serious electrical failures,” said FIP president CS Randhawa.”This was evident on June 12, 2025, when an Air India Vienna-Delhi flight was declared AOG due to flooding. A similar engine rollback occurred in the 2019 ANA Osaka incident. Today, history has repeated at Heathrow. All 787s must be grounded and thoroughly checked,” said Randhawa.