Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking

In this combo of images, a London-bound Air India plane crashes moments after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday. Pic/PTI

In an Insta world, it's no surprise that theories took flight within hours of the Ahmedabad plane crash. But while different perspectives are valuable, we must distinguish between speaking with confidence and speaking with knowledge, especially when it comes to aviation. The two are very different.

Investigations will eventually lead to a detailed report, but that could take anywhere between three to six months. Only then will we have a full and final picture. With the black box now recovered, some clarity may emerge sooner. These devices are built to withstand extreme conditions and provide crucial data, such as altitude, rate of descent, and other flight parameters, that help investigators piece together what went wrong.

There's also the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), which stores cockpit conversations and ambient sounds from the final 90 minutes or more of the flight. Together, these tools paint a clearer picture of the aircraft's final moments.

The bird-hit theory may hold some ground. However, it's rare for both engines to fail unless the aircraft encounters a flock, not just one or two birds. From the crash videos, I could discern that the aircraft lost lift, possibly due to simultaneous engine failure. There's also a visible left yaw (movement) in the nose of the aircraft.

Another concerning observation: the landing gear was down, which significantly increases drag. Normally, the gear should be retracted by the time the aircraft reaches 35 to 50 feet. Keeping it down consumes more fuel and reduces performance. It's surprising because aircraft systems give ample warnings if the gear isn't retracted. A standard fuel plan includes enough for the destination, then extra for one more approach in case the pilot cannot land at the first attempt for some reason, then a stock of 30 minutes of fuel after that and fuel to go to your nearest alternative designated airfield if need be. We have a Minimum Equipment List (MEL) where it is mentioned that we must rectify snags before the aircraft can fly again. No aircraft is allowed to fly with a snag if it affects safety. It's convenient to blame the airline or the pilots. But in this case, the pilots were highly trained. Authorities must also examine structures and buildings along the flight path. These must comply with legal height restrictions to ensure safe operations.

Often, it's the pilots who perished trying to save lives who get blamed. They're no longer around to defend themselves. This compounds agony for families who grapple with loss and then have to contend with a painful blaming session that ensues. A full investigation and report helps us learn from what has happened. Just like every incident in life holds learning lessons, we learn from every disaster. My condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. My advice to those on the conjecture carousel: ‘A little knowledge is a dangerous thing; Drink deep or taste not the Pierian Spring'

These are Alexander Pope's lines on criticism from the half-baked, self-styled experts. These lines I will amend to: ‘A little knowledge is a dangerous thing; Think deep before you blame airlines and pilots who have earned their wings.'

The columnist Capt. Kulin Ashar has 38 years of flying and retired as Deputy General Manager (Operations) Air India