Air India plane crash: Heart-wrenching story of Abdhiben Patel, who didn't want to leave her son behind in Britain
Patel's close friend and colleague at Zone Beauty Studio in Northampton told PA media that the woman didn't want to leave her son behind for the first time.
She had flown to India just two weeks earlier to care for her elderly mother, but was hesitant to make the trip and leave her eight-year-old son behind. 'She didn't want to go,' said Atif Karim, 45.
The man said the woman had told him that she didn't want to be away from her son, as it was her first time leaving him alone. She was very nervous.
"She wasn't excited,' he added. 'It was a sense of duty. Her mum was unwell, but you could tell it was weighing on her.' Mr Karim, a father of two, said recent tensions between India and Pakistan, which led to flight cancellations and uncertainty, had added to Patel's worries.
'All the flights were getting cancelled. It didn't feel like the right time.'
He said she used to take care of her son, Meer, because her husband, Pankaj, worked night shifts.
"She kept saying how shy and reserved he is, how attached they were,' he added.
'She was devoted to him – her entire world revolved around him," he added.
Patel was supposed to return to work on Saturday. She had offered to finish her work task remotely, a day before the crash.
'She said, 'Do you want me to finish that?' and later, 'Don't worry, I'll sort it,'' he said. 'That was the last I heard.'
Also read: Passenger on seat 11A survived Air India crash, says trouble started 30 seconds into flight
Abdhiben Patel is from Gujarat. She moved to the UK in 2012 and began working at the salon in 2016. She had become the manager of the salon. Her colleagues described her as a diligent, reliable worker.
'Yesterday, we had people coming in and crying their eyes out.' Inside the salon, he said the mood has changed, Mr Karim said. 'There's no music playing anymore,' he said.
His son and husband are in India now.
The Air India plane came crashing down seconds after takeoff. 241 people on board and at least 29 on the ground died in the accident.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner had crashed into a residential area shortly after take-off, killing 241 people on board and at least 29 on the ground. Only one passenger – a 40-year-old British man – survived.
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