Etihad Airways has issued an internal safety bulletin (dated July 12) advising pilots flying its Boeing 787 Dreamliners to “exercise caution when operating the fuel control switches or any other switches/control in their vicinity”.

This alert follows a recent diversion of an Etihad Dreamliner en route to Hyderabad due to issues suspected to be linked to the fuel control switch's locking mechanism. The airline has now mandated inspections of these switches across its fleet.

The move comes in the wake of a preliminary Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau report into Air India Flight AI 171’s crash on June 12. Investigators found that both engines lost thrust after their fuel switches inadvertently moved from RUN to CUTOFF shortly after takeoff. While the US FAA maintains that the switch design doesn’t pose a key hazard, airlines - led by precaution - are taking additional action.

Etihad’s proactive step highlights tightening safety protocols amid cockpit complexity and underlines the global aviation sector’s commitment to preventing switch-related errors.