More than 200 die in Air India plane crash
More than 200 people were killed when an Air India plane bound for London with 242 people on board crashed minutes after taking off from the western city of Ahmedabad on Thursday, authorities said, in the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade.
At least one person is known to have survived, police said, and the man told Indian media how he had heard a loud noise shortly after take-off.
The plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, came down in a residential area, crashing onto a medical college hostel outside the airport during lunch hour. It was headed for Gatwick Airport, south of the British capital.
City police chief GS Malik told Reuters that 204 bodies had been recovered from the crash site - both passengers and medical students. Vidhi Chaudhary, another senior police officer, said police found one survivor and said there could be more.
"Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed," 40-year-old survivor Ramesh Viswashkumar told the Hindustan Times from his hospital bed, adding he was desperate to hear what had happened to his brother, who was also on the flight.
"It all happened so quickly. When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me.
"Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital."
Police chief Malik said the bodies recovered could include both passengers and people killed on the ground.
"Chances are there could be some more survivors among those who are in hospital," police officer Chaudhary told Reuters.
"There are also chances that the death toll will go up. More than 50 injured are in hospitals at present."
Parts of the plane's body were scattered around the building into which it crashed. The tail of the plane was stuck on top of the building.
The passengers included 217 adults, 11 children and two infants, a source told Reuters. Of them, 169 were Indian nationals, 53 were Britons, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian, Air India said.
Australia's High Commission in New Delhi and the Consulate-General in Mumbai are urgently following up with the local authorities to find out whether any Australians were on board, a spokesperson for Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs said.
According to air traffic control at Ahmedabad Airport, the aircraft departed at 1.39pm local time from runway 23. It gave a Mayday call, signalling an emergency, but thereafter there was no response from the aircraft.
One television channel showed the plane taking off over a residential area and then disappearing from the screen before a huge jet of fire can be seen rising into the sky from beyond the houses.
Boeing said it was aware of initial reports and was working to gather more information. Boeing shares fell five per cent as the crash posed a major setback for the plane manufacturer as its new CEO looks to rebuild trust following a series of safety and production challenges.
"The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X.
"It is heartbreaking beyond words."
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said images emerging of the crash were "devastating", and that he was being kept informed as the situation developed. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said King Charles was also being kept updated.
The owners of Air India have said it will provide 10 million rupees ($A179,000) to the families of each of the dead, cover all medical expenses of those injured and help rebuild the hostel of the medical college.
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Perth Now
2 hours ago
- Perth Now
Tragic twist as family's smiling selfie before Air India crash disaster emerges
New details are emerging about the passengers and crew caught up in one of aviation's darkest days. More than 240 people were killed when Air India flight 171 bound for London Gatwick slammed into a medical college hostel in Ahmedabad, in India's west, just seconds after take-off on Thursday afternoon. WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: The lone survivor of tragic Air India plane crash. Among the victims were 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian national. Rescue crews continue to search through wreck and rubble for missing people and bodies, as well as vital clues that could explain what caused the Boeing 787 Dreamliner's downfall. 'Almost 70 per cent of the passengers were found in their seats, most of them had their seatbelts on,' a first responder said. It emerged on Friday that the jet had been in Australia just days ago. Air India crash sole survivor Vishwash Kumar Ramesh has spoken about his incredible escape in the airliner tragedy which killed hundreds. Credit: Seven There was just a single survivor from the Air India flight that was carrying 242 crew and passengers, including 11 children. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a passenger positioned in seat 11A, is a British national who had been visiting family. He walked away from the wreckage through a broken emergency exit and was able to speak from his hospital bed, having not sustained any major injuries. 'Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed. It all happened so quickly,' he said. Family told reporters that Ramesh had been seated next to his brother on the flight. Ramesh said 'I don't believe how I survived'. 'For some time I thought I was also going to die,' Ramesh, 40, told Indian state broadcaster DD News. 'But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive and I tried to unbuckle myself from the seat and escape from where I could. 'It was in front of my eyes that the air hostess and others (died).' Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, 60, has been identified as the senior figure on board the doomed flight. Sabharwal had warned the plane was losing power just seconds after taking off. 'Mayday ... no thrust, losing power, unable to lift,' he radioed. The veteran pilot, who reportedly has more than 8200 flight hours across more than two decades, was set to retire within months to spend time with his father. 'He was very reserved, disciplined. We used to see him come and go in uniform often, but he was a very reserved person,' a neighbour told The Indian Express. Komi Vyas, her husband Prateek Joshi and their three children. Credit: Supplied Doctors Prateek Joshi and Komi Vyas, and their three children, were on board, preparing to return London. They had snapped a selfie together on the plane, and were all smiles before take-off. 'It is with deep sorrow that we inform you that Dr Prateek Joshi and his family were on board the Air India flight that tragically crashed en route from Ahmedabad to London,' a spokesperson for Derby Hindu Temple said Former neighbour Neil Ryan said the family was 'wonderful. 'The family were really unassuming, genuine kind people, honestly. It's heartbreaking,' he told the BBC. First officer Clive Kundar was also highly experienced, with more than 1000 flying hours. Bollywood star Vikrant Massey shared on social media his heartbreak over Kundar's death, sharing that they were close family friends. 'My heart breaks for the families and loved ones of the ones who lost their lives in the unimaginably tragic air crash in Ahmedabad today,' he posted on Instagram two his two million followers. 'It pains even more to know that my uncle, Clifford Kunder lost his son, Clive Kunder, who was the first officer operation on that fateful flight.' Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek and Jamie Meek were on board a London-bound Air India flight when it crashed shortly after taking off. Credit: 7NEWS A wellness influencer couple from the UK were among victims of the crash. Jamie Meek and partner Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek had shared a video to social media shortly before boarding in which they celebrated the end of their holiday. 'Going back happily, happily, happily calm,' Greenlaw-Meek said in the clip that has circulated widely online. Meek's brother Nick said family had expected them to return home about 6.30pm on Thursday before visiting his mum to get his dog. 'She is not in a good way. It is all very raw for her at the moment,' he told the Independent. A dentist has been identified as the only Canadian on-board the ill-fated flight that crashed on Thursday. Dr Nirali Sureshkumar Patel was from Mississauga in Ontario, reported CBC. She graduated from college in India before relocating, and was described as 'amazing, always happy'. 'The feeling that my work has made a difference in someone's life brightens my day,' Patel said in a work bio looking at her career. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was 'devastated' to learn of the fatal flight. 'My thoughts are with the loved ones of everyone on board,' he said. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he was 'saddened' to learn a Canadian from the region 'was among those lost in the tragic Air India crash'. Nirali Sureshkumar Patel. Credit: The Heritage Dental Centre A young girl killed in the aviation disaster has been described as a 'ray of sunshine'. Parents Akeel Nanabawa and Hannaa Vorajee, a couple known for their charity work, and their four-year-old daughter Sara had been on a surprise trip to India. The headteacher of the school Sara attended said she 'lit up the classroom'. '(The family) touched lots of people and they will be missed by lots of people,' Abdullah Samad told the BBC. Akeel Nanabawa with wife Hannaa Vorajee and their daughter Sara. Credit: PA The Boeing Dreamliner with 242 people on board bound for Gatwick took off over a residential area and then disappeared from view before a huge fireball was seen rising into the sky. Rescue crews have searched both the plane wreckage and are combing buildings at the crash site too. Residents living in the vicinity said construction of the hostel for resident doctors was completed only a year ago and the buildings were not fully occupied. 'We were at home and heard a massive sound, it appeared like a big blast. We then saw very dark smoke which engulfed the entire area,' said Nitin Joshi, who has been living in the area for more than 50 years. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was briefed by officials on the progress of rescue operations when he visited the crash site in his home state of Gujarat. Modi also met some of the injured being treated in the hospital. 'The scene of devastation is saddening,' he said Search and rescue teams respond to the scene of a plane crash in Ahmedabad, India. Credit: AP A UK-bound Air India plane crashed onto a medical college hostel with 242 people on board. Credit: AAP The Wall Street Journal reported that an investigation into the crash was focusing on 'whether the aircraft had a loss or reduction in engine thrust', citing unnamed sources. Air India has said the investigation would take time. Planemaker Boeing said a team of experts is ready to go to India to help in the probe. The last fatal plane crash in India, the world's third-largest aviation market and its fastest growing, was in 2020 and involved Air India Express, the airline's low-cost arm. - With AAP
The Advertiser
3 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Lone survivor escaped plane wreck through broken hatch
The sole survivor of the Air India plane crash that killed more than 240 people says he walked out of a broken emergency exit after the aircraft hit a medical college hostel in the city of Ahmedabad. Ramesh Viswashkumar, who police said was on seat 11A near the emergency exit and managed to escape through the broken hatch, was filmed after Thursday's crash limping on the street in a blood-stained T-shirt with bruises on his face. That social media footage of the British national of Indian origin was broadcast on nearly all of India's news channels after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plummeted soon after taking off and erupted in a ball of fire. It was the worst aviation disaster in a decade. "I don't believe how I survived. For some time I thought I was also going to die," 40-year-old Viswashkumar told Indian state broadcaster DD News from his hospital bed on Friday. "But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive and I tried to unbuckle myself from the seat and escape from where I could. It was in front of my eyes that the air hostess and others (died)". Police said some people at the hostel and others on the ground were also killed in the crash. Rescue workers were searching for missing people and aircraft parts in the charred buildings of the hostel on Friday. Viswashkumar said the plane appeared to come to a standstill in midair for a few seconds shortly after take-off and the green and white cabin lights were turned on. He said he could feel the engine thrust increasing but then the plane "crashed with speed into the hostel". Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in his home state of Gujarat to visit the crash site, also met Viswashkumar in the hospital on Friday. Doctors told local media that he did not sustain any major injuries. "The side of the plane I was in landed on the ground, and I could see that there was space outside the aircraft, so when my door broke I tried to escape through it and I did," Viswashkumar said. "The opposite side of the aircraft was blocked by the building wall so nobody could have come out of there." Viswashkumar said he walked out of the crash site with only burn injuries on his left arm. The sole survivor of the Air India plane crash that killed more than 240 people says he walked out of a broken emergency exit after the aircraft hit a medical college hostel in the city of Ahmedabad. Ramesh Viswashkumar, who police said was on seat 11A near the emergency exit and managed to escape through the broken hatch, was filmed after Thursday's crash limping on the street in a blood-stained T-shirt with bruises on his face. That social media footage of the British national of Indian origin was broadcast on nearly all of India's news channels after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plummeted soon after taking off and erupted in a ball of fire. It was the worst aviation disaster in a decade. "I don't believe how I survived. For some time I thought I was also going to die," 40-year-old Viswashkumar told Indian state broadcaster DD News from his hospital bed on Friday. "But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive and I tried to unbuckle myself from the seat and escape from where I could. It was in front of my eyes that the air hostess and others (died)". Police said some people at the hostel and others on the ground were also killed in the crash. Rescue workers were searching for missing people and aircraft parts in the charred buildings of the hostel on Friday. Viswashkumar said the plane appeared to come to a standstill in midair for a few seconds shortly after take-off and the green and white cabin lights were turned on. He said he could feel the engine thrust increasing but then the plane "crashed with speed into the hostel". Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in his home state of Gujarat to visit the crash site, also met Viswashkumar in the hospital on Friday. Doctors told local media that he did not sustain any major injuries. "The side of the plane I was in landed on the ground, and I could see that there was space outside the aircraft, so when my door broke I tried to escape through it and I did," Viswashkumar said. "The opposite side of the aircraft was blocked by the building wall so nobody could have come out of there." Viswashkumar said he walked out of the crash site with only burn injuries on his left arm. The sole survivor of the Air India plane crash that killed more than 240 people says he walked out of a broken emergency exit after the aircraft hit a medical college hostel in the city of Ahmedabad. Ramesh Viswashkumar, who police said was on seat 11A near the emergency exit and managed to escape through the broken hatch, was filmed after Thursday's crash limping on the street in a blood-stained T-shirt with bruises on his face. That social media footage of the British national of Indian origin was broadcast on nearly all of India's news channels after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plummeted soon after taking off and erupted in a ball of fire. It was the worst aviation disaster in a decade. "I don't believe how I survived. For some time I thought I was also going to die," 40-year-old Viswashkumar told Indian state broadcaster DD News from his hospital bed on Friday. "But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive and I tried to unbuckle myself from the seat and escape from where I could. It was in front of my eyes that the air hostess and others (died)". Police said some people at the hostel and others on the ground were also killed in the crash. Rescue workers were searching for missing people and aircraft parts in the charred buildings of the hostel on Friday. Viswashkumar said the plane appeared to come to a standstill in midair for a few seconds shortly after take-off and the green and white cabin lights were turned on. He said he could feel the engine thrust increasing but then the plane "crashed with speed into the hostel". Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in his home state of Gujarat to visit the crash site, also met Viswashkumar in the hospital on Friday. Doctors told local media that he did not sustain any major injuries. "The side of the plane I was in landed on the ground, and I could see that there was space outside the aircraft, so when my door broke I tried to escape through it and I did," Viswashkumar said. "The opposite side of the aircraft was blocked by the building wall so nobody could have come out of there." Viswashkumar said he walked out of the crash site with only burn injuries on his left arm. The sole survivor of the Air India plane crash that killed more than 240 people says he walked out of a broken emergency exit after the aircraft hit a medical college hostel in the city of Ahmedabad. Ramesh Viswashkumar, who police said was on seat 11A near the emergency exit and managed to escape through the broken hatch, was filmed after Thursday's crash limping on the street in a blood-stained T-shirt with bruises on his face. That social media footage of the British national of Indian origin was broadcast on nearly all of India's news channels after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plummeted soon after taking off and erupted in a ball of fire. It was the worst aviation disaster in a decade. "I don't believe how I survived. For some time I thought I was also going to die," 40-year-old Viswashkumar told Indian state broadcaster DD News from his hospital bed on Friday. "But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive and I tried to unbuckle myself from the seat and escape from where I could. It was in front of my eyes that the air hostess and others (died)". Police said some people at the hostel and others on the ground were also killed in the crash. Rescue workers were searching for missing people and aircraft parts in the charred buildings of the hostel on Friday. Viswashkumar said the plane appeared to come to a standstill in midair for a few seconds shortly after take-off and the green and white cabin lights were turned on. He said he could feel the engine thrust increasing but then the plane "crashed with speed into the hostel". Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in his home state of Gujarat to visit the crash site, also met Viswashkumar in the hospital on Friday. Doctors told local media that he did not sustain any major injuries. "The side of the plane I was in landed on the ground, and I could see that there was space outside the aircraft, so when my door broke I tried to escape through it and I did," Viswashkumar said. "The opposite side of the aircraft was blocked by the building wall so nobody could have come out of there." Viswashkumar said he walked out of the crash site with only burn injuries on his left arm.
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘Something horrible': Experts analyse Air India crash
A plane disaster that killed hundreds of people in India has shocked the aviation world as experts try to process how it unfolded. Air India Flight 171 crashed into a residential area within seconds of lift-off at Ahmedabad airport, killing 241 on board and others at the crash site. One passenger miraculously survived after boarding the flight bound for London's Gatwick Airport on Thursday, as speculation mounts over what caused the tragedy. Keith Tonkin, an aviation consultant, told that although the cause was not yet clear, it was obvious that 'something horrible has happened'. 'Whether it's to do with the engines or some other, equipment on the aircraft, it's not really obvious at the moment,' he said. 'The fact that the landing gear was left down tells me that they either did that deliberately or for some reason, didn't have enough time to think of doing that when they probably should have. 'And that could mean that they had other things that they were dealing with at the time. 'So there's a little, little moment in time somewhere between taking off and somewhere in that very short climb out where something horrible is happening that the pilots weren't able to manage.' Mr Tonkin said the short time frame between take off and the crash was 'very unusual' compared to other air disasters. 'Because it's so close to this time start of the flight,' he said. 'Normally, you have an opportunity when you're taking an aircraft off to stop if it's not working properly. 'And so the pilots have got to a point where they just sort of continue that take off. And very shortly after that, the aircraft has stopped operating as you'd expect it to. 'So everything has been compressed into a very short time frame that you would not normally see.' Peter Carter, an aviation lawyer, said it did not appear to be an engine failure but was 'likely a case of aircraft configuration and the physics of airspeed, lift and drag'. 'The first thing that needs to be determined is whether the pilot chose an intersection departure rather than backtracking on the runway to make use of its full length of 3,500m. He said Flight Radar 24 appeared to show the aircraft did not backtrack to use the full length of the runway, which could have meant 'it did not have sufficient speed to safely 'rotate' and lift off by the time it arrived at the runway's end'. But, he added, it was possible this was an error by the flight tracking software. 'It also appears from the video that the landing gear was still in the 'down' position at a height it would normally be retracted so as to reduce drag and assist the aircraft's climb. 'And from the video it's unclear whether the flaps were in the takeoff position as they were required to be, so as to increase the lift on the wings during the initial climb.' Chrystal Zhang, from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, said that based on the footage she did not believe the crash was caused by a bird strike – as has been speculated. 'There are some facts that perhaps we cannot deny,' she said. 'The weather is clear, so it's good for takeoff. There is nothing hindering the aircraft from taking off. 'So weather wise, perhaps, is being ruled out at this stage. 'So in that case, the focus is really to understand how the pilots are operating and whether there are any other issues.' Although global air safety records are improving, Ms Zhang said some countries were still catching up. 'There has been some report saying that the air safety record in India had been experiencing issues and problems,' she said. 'In particular with increasing demand with the increase of the middle class and also the emergence of the low-cost carriers.' Tourism expert David Beirman said it was important to put the incident into context, saying, 'air travel statistically is probably the safest way to travel anywhere in the world'. 'So when you have an air crash off of the scale that that happened last night, it becomes big news because it is very rare that that such a such an incident occurs,' he said. 'From everything that's been said so far, it seems to have been a mechanical problem in the plane, which is very, very rare. 'The pilot was incredibly experienced, so I think it had 8000 hours or something.' Dr Beirman said it was a 'terrible tragedy' but a 'very unusual' incident. 'So I don't think it actually compromises the safety of the air travel as a whole, but it certainly will be a big question for Air India, who I'm sure will be investigating this one very carefully.'
