A VETERAN pilot has revealed what he believes caused the devastating Air India crash that killed 279 people.
YouTuber and commercial airline pilot Captain Steve Chen gave his chilling theory after watching the horrifying video of the disaster.
The London Gatwick-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner appeared to lose height moments after take-off and smashed into a doctor’s hostel in Ahmedabad, India.
Some 241 passengers and crew are believed to have been killed – leaving a miracle sole survivor – and 28 people on the ground also died.
Captain Steve said he believes to co-pilot may have made a simple – but devastating – error as the plane climbed.
From analysing the footage, he believes the pilot asked his colleague to retract the landing gear – but he then pulled the wrong switch.
He stated: “In my opinion, the pilot instructed the co-pilot to ‘gear up’ at the right moment.”
“I think the co-pilot grabbed the flap handle and raised the flaps, instead of the gear.
“If that happened, this explains a lot of why this airplane stopped flying.”
Captain Steve explained the 787’s wings would normally bend during take off as lift forces take it into the air.
But the footage appears to no show this – fuelling theories that the flaps which help to lift the plane were retracted.
Full video of the crash shows the plane heading down the runway before lifting into the air.
After barely 30 seconds the plane appears to dip and goes begins an agonising descent back to the ground.
It then exploded in a fireball as it crashed into the nearby doctors’ hostel.
Investigations are still ongoing into the cause of the crash – with at least one of the black boxes recovered from the wreck.
Both pilot Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and co-pilot Clive Kunder and believed to be among the dead.
Mr Sabharwal, who had 8,200 hours of experience, while his colleague Mr Kunder had 1,100 hours.
The sole survivor of the crash – Vishwash Ramesh – could also provide key clues as to what happened to the plane.
He said cabin lights began flickering before the jet sank through the air and crashed.
Describing the lead-up to the tragic event, Vishwash, a resident of Leicester, recounted: “As the aircraft ascended, within a brief five to ten seconds, it seemed to be suspended in mid-air.
“Suddenly, the lights started flickering – green and white.
“The aircraft wasn’t gaining altitude and was just gliding before it suddenly slammed into a building and exploded.”
Vishwash’s account of the flashing lights follows a passenger’s assertion that on a preceding flight, various electrical components, like the seat-back screens, were non-operational.”
Aviation experts have speculated that the reports of dodgy electrics could be a sign of a power failure, possibly explaining the crash.
Air India is keeping an open mind as to what went wrong and caused the deaths of 52 Brits.
Theories being considered include issues with the engine thrust, flaps and landing gear – as well as a bird strike and a pilot error.
