‘Heartbreaking beyond words': Many killed as Air India plane bound for London crashes on take-off
One television channel showed the plane gaining height over a residential area and then disappearing from the screen before a huge cloud of fire and smoke rose into the sky from beyond the houses.
Firefighters doused the smoking wreckage of the plane, which would have been fully loaded with fuel, and an adjacent multi-story building with water. Charred bodies lay on the ground.
At least 30 bodies had been recovered from a building at the site of the crash, rescue personnel said, and more people were trapped inside.
'The building on which it has crashed is a doctor's hostel ... we have cleared almost 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the area and will clear the rest soon,' a senior police officer told reporters.
Bhupendra Patel, the chief minister of Gujarat, the state where the crash occurred, said a corridor had been set up to quickly transport injured passengers to hospitals for treatment, The New York Times reported.
India's Civil Aviation Minister, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, posted on X that rescue teams had been mobilised, and all efforts were being made to ensure medical aid and relief support at the site.
'We are on highest alert. I am personally monitoring the situation,' he said.
A spokesperson for India's Ahmedabad airport said all flights had been temporarily suspended.
Gatwick Airport confirmed the plane had been due to land in London at 6.25pm local time.
British Foreign Minister David Lammy said he was deeply saddened by news of the crash, while a spokesperson for Buckingham Palace said King Charles was being kept updated.
Britain was now working with Indian authorities, Lammy said.
'My thoughts are with all those affected,' he posted on X. 'The UK is working with local authorities in India to urgently establish the facts and provide support.'
Britain has very close ties with India. There were nearly 1.9 million people in the country of Indian descent, according to the 2021 UK census.
A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said the Australian government expressed its condolences to those affected by the Air India crash. The Australian High Commission in New Delhi and the Consulate-General in Mumbai were urgently following up with the local authorities to determine whether there were any Australians on board.
Air India's chairman, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, said its 'primary focus is on supporting all the affected people and their families'.
He said on X that the airline had set up an emergency centre and support team for families seeking information about those who were on the flight. Air India has also set up a dedicated passenger hotline number, 1800 5691 444.
'Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of all those affected by this devastating event,' Chandrasekaran said.
Boeing, whose shares dropped 8 per cent in pre-market US trading, said it is aware of initial reports and was working to gather more information.
Flightradar24 listed the crashed plane as having completed return flights from Delhi to Melbourne, Tokyo and Paris over the past five days before flying from the Indian capital to Ahmedabad overnight.
The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner is a widebody, twin-engined plane – one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service. It was introduced in 2009 and more than 1000 have been delivered to dozens of airlines, according to the Flightradar24 website. This is the first crash ever of a Boeing 787 aircraft, according to the Aviation Safety Network database.
The last major passenger plane crash in India was in 2020 when an Air India Express Boeing 737 skidded off a hilltop runway in southern India, killing 21 people.
The worst air disaster in India was on November 12, 1996, when a Saudi Arabian Airlines flight collided midair with a Kazakhastan Airlines Flight near Charki Dadri in Haryana state, killing all 349 on board the two planes.
The crash comes days before the opening of the Paris Air Show, a major aviation expo where Boeing and European rival Airbus will showcase their aircraft and battle for jet orders from airline customers.
Boeing has been in recovery mode for more than six years after Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 Max 8, plunged into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia minutes after take-off from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. Five months later, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 Max 8, crashed after take-off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing 157 passengers and crew members.
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ABC News
31 minutes ago
- ABC News
Just one man survived the Air India crash. What's it like to survive a mass disaster?
Viswashkumar Ramesh, a British citizen returning from a trip to India, has been confirmed as the only survivor of Thursday's deadly Air India crash. "I don't know how I am alive," Ramesh told family, according to his brother Nayan, in a video call moments after emerging from the wreckage. Another brother Ajay, seated elsewhere on the plane, was killed. The Boeing 787-7 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college less than a minute after taking off in the city of Ahmedabad, killing the other 229 passengers and 12 crew. Several more people were killed on the ground. Surviving a mass disaster of this kind may be hailed as a kind of "miracle". But what is it like to survive — especially as the only one? Past research has shown disaster survivors may experience an intense range of emotions, from grief and anxiety to feelings of loss and uncertainty. These are common reactions to an extraordinary situation. Some people may develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and have difficulty adjusting to a new reality after bearing witness to immense loss. They may also be dealing with physical recovery from injuries sustained in the disaster. Most people recover after disasters by drawing on their own strengths and the support of others. Recovery rates are high: generally less than one in ten of those affected by disasters develop chronic, long-term problems. However, being a sole survivor of a mass casualty may have its own complex psychological challenges. Survivors can experience guilt they lived when others died. My friend, Gill Hicks, spoke to me for this article about the ongoing guilt she still feels, years after surviving the 2005 bombings of the London underground. Lying trapped in a smoke-filled train carriage, she was the last living person to be rescued after the attack. Gill lost both her legs. Yet she still wonders, "Why me? Why did I get to go home, when so many others didn't?" In the case of a sole survivor, this guilt may be particularly acute. However, research addressing the impact of sole survivorship is limited. Most research that looks at the psychological impact of disaster focuses on the impact of disasters more broadly. Those interviewed for a 2013 documentary about surviving large plane crashes, Sole Survivor, express complex feelings — wanting to share their stories, but fearing being judged by others. Being the lone survivor can be a heavy burden. "I didn't think I was worthy of the gift of being alive," George Lamson Jr told the documentary, after surviving a 1985 plane crash in Nevada that killed all others on board. People who survive a disaster may also be under pressure to explain what happened and relive the trauma for the benefit of others. Viswashkumar Ramesh was filmed and interviewed by media in the minutes and hours following the Air India crash. But as he told his brother: "I have no idea how I exited the plane." It can be common for survivors themselves to be plagued by unanswerable questions. Did they live for a reason? Why did they live, when so many others died? These kinds of unanswerable questions reflect our natural inclination to look for meaning in experiences, and to have our life stories make sense. For some people, sharing a traumatic experience with others who've been through it or something similar can be a beneficial part of the recovery process, helping to process emotions and regain some agency and control. However, this may not always be possible for sole survivors, potentially compounding feelings of guilt and isolation. Survivor guilt can be an expression of grief and loss. Studies indicate guilt is notably widespread among individuals who have experienced traumatic events, and it is associated with heightened psychopathological symptoms (such as severe anxiety, insomnia or flashbacks) and thoughts of suicide. Taking time to process the traumatic event can help survivors cope, and seeking support from friends, family and community or faith leaders can help an individual work through difficult feelings. My friend Gill says the anxiety rises as the anniversary of the disaster approaches each year. Trauma reminders such as anniversaries are different to unexpected trauma triggers, but can still cause distress. Media attention around collectively experienced dates can also amplify trauma-related distress, contributing to a cycle of media consumption and increased worry about future events. On July 7 each year, Gill holds a private remembrance ritual. This allows her to express her grief and sense of loss, and to honour those who did not survive. These types of rituals can be a valuable tool in processing feelings of grief and guilt, offering a sense of control and meaning and facilitating the expression and acceptance of loss. But lingering guilt and anxiety — especially when it interferes with day-to-day life — should not be ignored. Ongoing survivor guilt is associated with significantly higher levels of post-traumatic symptoms. Survivors may need support from psychologists or mental health professionals in the short and long term. Erin Smith is an associate professor and discipline lead (Paramedicine) at La Trobe University. This piece first appeared on The Conversation.
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7NEWS
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Air India black boxes recovered after 241 killed just after take-off in Ahmedabad
Investigators have recovered equipment from this week's tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad, India, which could shed light on the final moments on the flight deck. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner's cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, which were recovered from on top of the medical college hostel building where the plane crashed, could put to rest some of the speculation into the investigation that killed 241 people aboard the aircraft, according to aviation industry experts. The flight data recorder was recovered from the rear end of the plane. The question will be whether the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators, India or another country will ingest the black boxes' data, according to former managing director of the NTSB and CNN aviation analyst Peter Goelz. 'It's quite dramatic,' Goelz said. 'It looked to me like the plane was trying to land at the end. It was flaring, but we just won't know until we get the boxes back.' The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau of India is in possession of the recorders and other potential pieces of evidence for the investigation. The data recorders are expected to give some insight into what happened during the flight's final moments, when pilots were making critical decisions. Less than a minute after takeoff, staff on the plane gave a mayday call to air traffic control, Indian civil aviation authorities said. The deadly crash has drawn even more global attention to air safety and spurred on public anxieties about flying. There have already been several aviation tragedies and incidents this year — including January's midair collision between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet — that have prompted calls to increase safety measures. Boeing's Dreamliner Boeing's 787-8 Dreamliner is highly regarded by many aviation experts for its reliability and engineering. In the last 14 years, the fleet has carried more than 1 billion total passengers, according to Boeing. 'It truly is an amazing aeroplane, and when they engineered it, it was completely off the normal production line of what Boeing usually creates,' said Erika Armstrong, a pilot and director of marketing at Advanced Aircrew Academy. For years, the company has drawn increasing scrutiny for crashes involving its planes, leading to the 20-month grounding of its MAX aircraft following two deadly crashes, quality concerns and financial woes. Golez said the tragedy 'couldn't happen at a worse time for Boeing', which is part of the investigation along with GE Aerospace, the engine manufacturer for the plane. In the United States, the plane maker will be in the hot seat at the end of the month, when investigators are set to determine the probable cause of an in-flight separation of a mid-exit door plug on a Boeing 737-9 commercial plane near Portland, Oregon, last year. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg has also reportedly cancelled plans to attend the Paris Air Show, a major aviation industry event where the company typically shows off its aircraft. 'This accident is a further challenge,' Goelz said. The Dreamliner is popular for international routes, with the 787-8 configuration fitting up to 248 passengers, according to Boeing. What happens next The NTSB said on Friday that investigators expect to be in India within the next few days. Jeff Guzzetti, president of consulting firm Guzzetti Aviation Risk Discovery and former NTSB official, said these investigations typically hold an 'organisational meeting' where all of the technical experts will gather, recalling his own experience with accidents. 'They will form speciality groups' assigned to analyse different areas, such as the engines or the flight data recorder, he said. 'They'll put representatives from the different organisations on these groups, and they will begin to methodically document the wreckage and download the recorders.' The crash falls under the jurisdiction of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the United Nations agency that helps 193 countries work together in air travel. Guzzetti said the investigation is in its fact-finding phase, which includes wreckage clean up and interviews of those who trained the pilots. The captain and first officer's background will be looked at, he said, which could range from how much sleep they got to what their flight record was like.
