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Expert exits Air India Ahmedabad crash probe

New Delhi: A pilot who had been roped in as a consultant to assist the investigation into the Ahmedabad aircraft crash has stepped away from the inquiry following disagreements over the probe process, people close to him told ET.R S Sandhu, a veteran pilot brought in as a subject matter expert by the investigating panel, is no longer part of the team after recusing himself over differences, they said.Also read: Vijay Rupani's daughter accuses Air India of pressuring crash victims' families to waive legal rightsWhile he has not submitted a resignation letter, they said Sandhu has not attended any meetings since January and does not intend to participate in future proceedings.The Press Information Bureau (PIB) and GVG Yugandhar, director general of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB)-which is leading the probe into the Boeing 787 crash on June 12 last year that killed 260 people - did not respond to queries on the matter despite repeated reminders.Sandhu declined to comment.A senior government official, however, disputed the suggestion, saying subject matter experts are not required to be part of the entire probe process and are called in as and when required. "When the investigator-in-charge feels it necessary, he will seek inputs from the expert. Sandhu's inputs were recorded," he said.Subject matter experts are not part of the main panel but provide inputs in their areas of expertise. As part of the inquiry process, the AAIB had roped in experienced pilots, engineers, aviation medicine specialists, psychologists and flight recorder specialists.Also read: Air India denies pressuring AI-171 victims' families to sign compensation waiver, says no deadline to accept settlementSandhu was brought in to consult the flight operations group because of his experience operating the Boeing 787. The flight operations group is responsible for collecting facts and examining the actions of the pilots.The alleged differences underscore the complexity of the investigation into one of the deadliest aviation crashes. While a preliminary report published last year did not explicitly say so, it indicated the crash may have been the result of human action.It said that seconds after take-off, the fuel control switches on both engines briefly moved from 'run' to 'cut off', severing fuel supply and causing a loss of power.These switches control fuel flow to the engines. On modern aircraft such as the Boeing 787, they are fitted with safeguards, including a metal lock and a surrounding guard, to prevent accidental shut-off.However, the findings have drawn severe criticism from unions and advocacy groups representing pilots in India. The Federation of Indian Pilots, which counts 5,000 pilots among its members, and the father of the crashed flight's captain have petitioned the Supreme Court for a court-led investigation. Sandhu, incidentally, has been closely associated with pilot unions during his time at Air India.The AAIB is unlikely to publish a final report within a year of the accident but will release an interim report on June 12.

'You've Transformed India': Netanyahu's Special Video Message For PM Modi On Completion Of 12-Year Milestone

In what can be defined as a turning point on India's stance on Israel, Narendra Modi became the first sitting Prime Minister to visit Jerusalem in 2017

Sushmita Dev says quitting TMC the best decision she took

Sushmita Dev says quitting TMC the best decision she took

Decoding SIR impact in West Bengal

The post-SIR polls in West Bengal saw the BJP secure a decisive victory, with AITC chief Mamata Banerjee alleging electoral manipulation. Large-scale deletions and opaque additions of electors during the SIR had a major impact on the rolls’ demographic composition; and appears to have influenced the results alongside anti-incumbency and communal polarisation

Sukhendu Sekhar Ray distances himself from TMC rebel group

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DYFI demands notification for recruitment of teachers for students with special needs

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Special teams under Singappen scheme begin patrolling in Vellore, nearby districts

Tamil Nadu Speaker’s decision to accept resignation of MLAs challenged before Madras High Court

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After Ashok Gehlot's Outburst, Sachin Pilot's Message On "Restraint"

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Sushmita Dev Opens Up On Future Political Plans After TMC And Rajya Sabha Exit | Politics | News18

Former TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev has opened up about her decision to resign from the Trinamool Congress, saying she wants to contribute more effectively to Assam's development. Reflecting on the post-election political landscape, Dev discussed her future aspirations, the challenges of party alignment, and the importance of maintaining ideological integrity while pursuing public service. n18oc_india News18 Mobile App - https://onelink.to/desc-youtube

Strong heroines, mellow heroes, engaging stories and fierce social commentary define Bharathiraja’s repertoire

With fresh eyes, groomed on a rural story line in the lush surroundings of Theni in south Tamil Nadu, Bharathiraja decided he was done with the conventional tropes of the hero, the baddie, and a hanger-on heroine

Minister stresses the importance of archives for deciphering the past and understanding the future

EXCLUSIVE | Not An Easy Decision, Politics Is Like No Other Calling: Sushmita Dev On TMC Resignation

In an exclusive conversation, Sushmita Dev opened up on her resignation from the Trinamool Congress, saying it was not an easy decision to make.Dev said politics is “like no other calling” and reflected on the shifting nature of Indian politics. Referring to Mamata Banerjee’s past association with the NDA government, she said, “Who would’ve thought that the same Mamata Banerjee who went with the NDA govt once will today be on the receiving end?”Her remarks come amid deepening turmoil within the TMC, growing internal dissent and speculation over the party’s future direction. n18oc_indian18oc_politicsn18oc_breaking-newsNews18 Mobile App - https://onelink.to/desc-youtube

'Soft kill weapon': China’s military warns of ‘AI sycophancy’ in battlefield decision-making

China's military is sounding the alarm on 'AI sycophancy,' warning that artificial intelligence systems might favor user biases over facts, posing significant risks to military operations. The PLA emphasizes the need for safeguards to prevent tactical errors and erosion of human judgment, advocating for rigorous testing and oversight of AI in decision-making.

Rajya Sabha polls: Congress delegation meets ECI over rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination

Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi said that all Meenakshi Natarajan had received was a court notice on a private complaint, asking why cognisance shouldn’t be taken

Congress calls Returning Officer’s order on Meenakshi Natarajan’s RS nomination ‘egregious’

Senior leaders Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who led the party’s legal arguments before the Election Commission, said the Congress had demonstrated that the Returning Officer’s decision was legally untenable and urged the EC to reverse the decision

12 yrs of PM Modi: Bold reforms $ decisive decisions

Rich Countries Off Track, May Fall Short Of 2030 Climate Targets, Warns Report As Bonn Talks Begin

In contrast, BASIC countries, including India, showed stronger commitment, with India specifically meeting its 50% non-fossil installed capacity target ahead of schedule

SpaceX wants regular investors to help its stock launch. Here's what to know before clicking 'buy'

When SpaceX makes its debut on the U.S. stock market, it wants smaller-pocketed, mom-and-pop investors to play a big role in what may be the biggest IPO ever.Elon Musk's rocket company, formally known as Space Exploration Technologies Corp., is steering some of its initial public offering of stock directly to what are called "retail" investors. These are people who buy stocks in a brokerage account on their phone, not pension funds or other big "institutional" investors routing orders to their professional trading desks.Here are some things to keep in mind as the IPO approaches:A chunk of SpaceX stock will go to regular investorsMost IPOs offer only 5% to 10% of the total offering to retail investors, according to Fidelity. In this case, though, it could be up to 30%. SpaceX expects retail investors to participate in its IPO through Charles Schwab, Fidelity, Robinhood, SoFi and E-Trade by Morgan Stanley.At Fidelity, investors with as little as $2,000 in their accounts could potentially snag SpaceX shares in the IPO. That's down from account minimums of $100,000 or even $500,000 that Fidelity has for other equity offerings.Demand from investors may be so high in this IPO that not everyone indicating interest will actually get a share.Trying for a short-term flip has risksGiven all the hype around SpaceX, temptation could be high to grab shares in the IPO and sell them quickly if a frenzy sends its price spiking. But brokerages have policies to block investors from future offerings if they dump shares bought in an IPO quickly, like within a couple weeks.Big swings in price may be possiblePotentially high interest from retail investors following the IPO is one reason SpaceX is warning that its stock price could be volatile. These investors aren't known for moving as meticulously as a pension fund, which is trying to build money for payments it must make years or decades in the future.It's retail investors, after all, who helped drive GameStop and other "meme stocks" to market-bending heights in 2021 that professional investors called irrational.IPOs can see a big first-day bounce, but that may not lastThe typical IPO has seen a 7% jump in its first day of trading, from 1980 through 2025, according to Jay Ritter, an IPO expert and a professor at the University of Florida's Warrington College of Business.But IPOs tend to lag similar-sized peers in the ensuing five years, not including their first day of trading. They do so by an average of 3.6% per year, according to Ritter.SpaceX has debt and has been losing moneyIt's very expensive to launch things out of the earth's atmosphere and to construct huge AI data centers, and SpaceX has built up $29.1 billion in debt, as of the end of March.The company also lost $4.9 billion last year and another $4.3 billion through the first three months of 2026. It acknowledges that it "may not achieve profitability in the future."Over the long term, a stock's price tends to track with how much profit the company is making.You don't have to buy SpaceX to own itYou could end up owning some of SpaceX even if you never intended to. Consider the many people who own shares of the popular QQQ exchange-traded fund, which tracks the Nasdaq 100 index and has roughly $460 billion in total assets.Historically, the Nasdaq 100 index would wait until each December to add new members in an annual reconstitution to make sure it includes the 100 largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq. But Nasdaq recently made changes to allow some big companies to enter the Nasdaq 100 index after just 15 trading days.That means if SpaceX's IPO is as successful as expected, it could quickly join both the Nasdaq 100 and QQQ fund, all while QQQ holders do nothing on their own.The company behind the more popular S&P 500 index, though, is not making changes that would allow SpaceX faster entry.Any shares bought would take a back seat to Musk's in influenceIn its IPO, SpaceX is offering 555.6 million shares of its "Class A" stock. Each of these shares gives an investor one vote on matters that shareholders decide. That includes such weighty things as who is on the board of directors overseeing the CEO.This IPO is not offering what are called "Class B" shares, each of which give its holder 10 votes. Musk, meanwhile, owns so many of those shares that he by himself could control more than 82% of all the stock's voting power following the IPO.In filings with U.S. securities regulators, SpaceX acknowledges the potential for conflicts of interest between it and Musk, along with other companies he owns, such as Tesla.Some big investors really disagree with the ownership structureOfficials from pension funds for firefighters, teachers and other workers in California and New York sent a letter to SpaceX last month decrying some of the provisions in its IPO, including "super voting shares," mandatory arbitration of shareholder claims instead of the possibility of lawsuits and how much power Musk will hold over the company.They said they could become owners of SpaceX stock because they hold index funds, which automatically buy stocks after they get included in certain indexes.If Musk is able to control so much of the voting power on the board of directors, it would make him tremendously powerful atop SpaceX, "essentially making him unfireable without his own consent," the CEO of California Public Employees' Retirement System, the New York state comptroller and the New York City comptroller wrote in their letter."This level of insulation from accountability is virtually unheard of among any other large U.S. issuer whose governing documents foreclose accountability to public owners on these terms."Don't confuse SpaceX with other companies with similar namesSpaceX plans to trade under the ticker symbol "SPCX." That's very close to "SPCE," which is the symbol for Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic Holdings.

Deve Gowda says bond with PM not tied to Rajya Sabha seat: ‘No leader matches Modi’

The BJP's decision to field Prof M Nagaraja for the Rajya Sabha instead of renominating former prime minister Deve Gowda prompted the JD(S) patriarch's remarks.