According to a report published on Wednesday by The Wall Street Journal quoting sources close to United States officials’ early assessment of evidence, the black box audio recording of the last conversation between the two pilots indicates that the captain might have turned off the switches controlling the flow of fuel to the plane’s engines.

Domestic Indian airlines were ordered to carry out inspections of fuel switches on Boeing aircraft in their fleets by the country's aviation regulator in the wake of last month's deadly Air India crash.