Mangaluru Roots and Mumbai Beginnings: The Story of Co-pilot Clive Kundar
Mangaluru: Among the crew of the ill-fated Air India Boeing 787‑8 Dreamliner (AI‑171), First Officer Clive Kundar—who tragically perished in the crash—was a young pilot with family roots in Mangaluru and a present-day base in Santa Cruz–Kalina, Mumbai .
Clive, aged in his early thirties, logged approximately 1,100 flight hours at the time of the accident. He trained at the Paris Air Inc. flight school in Florida before being inducted into Air India's Dreamliner division. Sources describe him as 'soft‑spoken, highly focused, and deeply passionate about flying', while maintaining strong ties with his coastal hometown of Mangaluru.
He was serving alongside Captain Sumeet Sabharwal (8,200 flight hours) during the aircraft's emergency call and subsequent crash shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad. Clive's tragic death marks a profound loss for both the aviation community and his coastal roots, as investigations into the cause of the crash continue.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
42 minutes ago
- Time of India
Plane crash: DNA tests identify 80 victims including ex-CM Vijay Rupani; 33 bodies handed over to kin
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Three days after the tragic crash of Air India flight AI-171 in Ahmedabad, which has so far claimed 270 lives, hospital authorities confirmed on Sunday the identification of 80 victims through DNA matching, including that of former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay have handed over 33 bodies to the victims' families, officials said on was among the 242 passengers and crew members on board the London-bound Air India flight AI-171 that crashed on Gujarat government has announced a state mourning for Rupani on Monday. His funeral procession will be held in Rajkot in the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college complex moments after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1:39 PM on Thursday. So far 29 people are reported to have died in the disaster on the ground which includes five MBBS students. Only one person from the aircraft miraculously survived."A total of 80 plane crash victims have been identified so far through DNA matching. Of these, the bodies of 33 victims have been handed over to their respective families," Additional Civil Superintendent Dr. Rajnish Patel told victims whose mortal remains were handed over were from Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Kheda, Botad and other the 51 people injured in the incident, 38 have been discharged, while 13 are still undergoing treatment, said Dr. Patel, a professor of surgery at the government-run B J Medical to Dr. Dhaval Gameti, president of the BJ Medical College Junior Doctors' Association, around 270 bodies were brought to Ahmedabad Civil Hospital from the crash Relief Commissioner Alok Kumar Pandey told reporters that families of all 230 passengers who perished on the flight have been contacted."Members of only three deceased passengers are yet to give their DNA samples as they live abroad. They are expected to arrive tomorrow evening. Along with the mortal remains, we are also handing over death certificates to the kin so that they don't face any issues afterwards," said Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is leading a thorough probe into the causes of the crash. Various Central and state government agencies, including the state police, are assisting the AAIB team at the crash site in said the first meeting of a high-level multi-disciplinary committee formed by the Centre will be held on Monday in New committee, headed by Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan, is mandated to ascertain the "root cause" of the plane crash and assess any contributing factors, including mechanical failure, human error, and regulatory compliances. The committee has been mandated to submit its report within three part of the ongoing efforts, 230 teams have been formed to coordinate with the victims' fire brigade officials said three delegations visited the crash site on Sunday including some foreigners to assist Air India on Sunday said it is working closely with other Tata group companies to provide every possible assistance to the families and loved ones of the plane crash airline in a statement also said that over 400 family members have reached Ahmedabad and are being assisted by its teams on the assess the situation, P.K. Mishra, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, visited the crash site and Civil Hospital on Sunday. He was briefed on the sequence of events and interacted with the government officials apprised Mishra about the sequence of events leading to the disaster, which is the country's worst aviation accident in enquiring about the health of the injured, Mishra proceeded to the hospital's morgue area."I am very pained by the enormity of the tragedy. Everybody is sad. It is our duty to share grief and express our feelings for the victims," Mishra told Municipal Corporation (AMC) Commissioner Banchha Nidhi Pani highlighted the crucial recovery of the black box, an essential component of the investigation."The black box recovery was a very important part of the investigation AMC immediately acted and the black box was also recovered," Pani said, noting its location in the tail end of the aircraft, which was embedded in a Police Commissioner G.S. Malik also visited the accident site on Sunday morning.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
Chennai-bound British Airways Boeing Dreamliner returns to London mid-air due to technical snag
A Chennaibound British Airways Boeing Dreamliner returned to London due to a technical snag on Sunday. read more A British Airways Boeing Dreamliner bound for Chennai was forced to return to London mid-flight on Sunday after experiencing a technical issue. In a statement, British Airways confirmed that the aircraft landed safely and that all passengers and crew disembarked normally. However, the airline did not disclose key details, including the flight's departure time, the number of individuals on board, or how long the plane had been airborne before it turned back. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'The aircraft returned to Heathrow as a standard precaution after reports of a technical issue,' British Airways said. However, as per the live flight tracking website British Airways flight BA35 was scheduled to depart at 1240 pm and had to arrive in Chennai at 3.30 am. It departed from London Heathrow at 1.16 pm but left after a delay of over 35 minutes. The flight BA35 operated with a Boeing 787-8 remained airborne for nearly two hours before returning to London Heathrow, according to data from The aircraft remained in multiple holding patterns before returning to Heathrow Airport, as per the website. 'Our teams are working hard to get their journeys back on track as soon as possible. The incident comes just days after a tragic Air India Dreamliner crash in Ahmedabad claimed the lives of all 241 passengers and crew members, adding to growing concerns around the safety of the Boeing Dreamliner fleet. Meanwhile, a Hyderabad-bound Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt also made an air turnback to Frankfurt on Sunday, as per However, the reason for its diversion back to Frankfurt was not known. Flight LH 752 operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft departed from Frankfurt at 14:29 instead of its scheduled departure time of 13.05 pm. The flight was to arrive in Hyderabad at 1.20 am, as per the website. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With inputs from agencies
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Air India Delhi-Vadodara flight returns to IGIA 30 min after takeoff due to snag
New Delhi: Air India Delhi-Vadodara flight (AI 819) safely returned to Indira Gandhi International Airport within half an hour of take off on Sunday evening after a suspected snag with the landing gear. The Airbus A321 (VT-PPI) took off at 6.51pm. Soon after getting airborne pilots suspected trouble with the landing gear. Sources say it reportedly did not retract. The crew then informed Delhi Air Traffic Control that they will be turning back to make a precautionary landing. As per procedure, Delhi airport made all emergency arrangements. The plane landed safely at 7.20pm, according to flight tracking sites. "There was a technical issue suspected with the landing gear. After thorough checks, it was cleared for operating on Sunday night itself," said sources. TNN
