'Thought Pakistan fired missile': Students feared attack when Air India flight crashed into BJ Medical College hostel
'Air India Plane Crash: The tragic crash of Air India Flight 171 on June 12, 2025, not only claimed 241 lives but also revived deep-seated fears among medical students at BJ Medical College, who initially believed the devastating impact on their hostel was the result of a missile attack from Pakistan.
The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, bound for London Gatwick, lost altitude moments after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, crashing into the residential quarters of BJ Medical College doctors in the Meghani Nagar area. The crash caused a massive explosion and thick black smoke to billow skywards, killing 241 people on board and more than two dozen on the ground, including nine doctors.
Among the survivors at BJ Medical College was Keshav Bhadana, a second-year MBBS student from Faridabad, who recounted to NDTV the harrowing moments when the walls of the medical college hostel began to crumble.
'It was lunch time. At around 1.30 pm, I was eating with my friends at the mess when suddenly, the walls began to collapse and the ceiling began to fall. At first, it seemed like a dust storm. We then thought it must have been an earthquake,' he said.
Bhadana's initial reaction was shaped by the tense geopolitical climate between India and Pakistan. 'Then I thought Pakistan must have attacked with a missile. I put my hands on my face out of fear."
"The moment I removed my hands from my face, I saw suitcases falling from above. Then I thought it must have been a plane crash,' the medico added.
The student lost four friends in the Air India disaster.
'At the time of the accident, 50 children were eating on my floor. There were six friends sitting at my table. Four of them were killed in the (Air India plane) crash. One of them was a very close friend of mine and I miss him,' Bhadana told NDTV.
He also described his injuries and the chaos that followed: 'I saw a wall falling on me. As I fell backwards, I suffered injuries on my hands, legs and head. My legs were buried under the rubble.'
The situation worsened when gas cylinders in the mess began exploding, sending the survivors into further panic. 'We were on the first floor of the mess. Everyone was screaming... There was black smoke everywhere, so nothing was visible. Suddenly, the cylinders in the mess started exploding,' he said. 'Many people had stopped showing signs of any movement. Maybe they had died. We came out with great difficulty.'
This fear of a missile strike was not unfounded given the recent escalation in tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad. The crash occurred against the backdrop of Operation Sindoor.
The 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 civilians including tourists were killed by militants, significantly escalated tensions between India and Pakistan.
In response, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting nine terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to dismantle militant infrastructure.
Following these strikes, Pakistan attempted missile and drone attacks on India's western border states, including Rajasthan, Punjab, and Gujarat, leading to a brief but intense military conflict before a ceasefire was agreed upon.
The border states of Rajasthan, Punjab, and Gujarat were on high alert due to fears of missile attacks.
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Time of India
29 minutes ago
- Time of India
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Time of India
44 minutes ago
- Time of India
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Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Air India plane crash: AI-171 probe looks at Gatwick takeoff incident 5 yrs ago for possible clues
Investigators probing the June 12 crash of Air India flight AI-171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick are taking a close look at a February 2020 incident in Gatwick, involving an Airbus A321, in which both engines malfunctioned immediately after takeoff. It led to a Mayday call before the aircraft returned to Gatwick 11 minutes later after a turnaround. In its 2020 investigation, the UK Air Accident Investigation Branch (AIIB), which is also in Ahmedabad to probe the June 12 crash, found that the reason for the engine failure was fuel system contamination even though engineers had found no fault prior to clearing it for flying that night. Officers aware of the ongoing investigation into the Ahmedabad crash said a thorough scrutiny of AI-171's technical logs in the 24 hours preceding the crash were being looked into as it was 'clear from visual observation and wreckage' that the flight suffered a power failure. 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The black boxes and the DVR have been recovered but the officer said that the devices were damaged and file extraction would 'be a complicated process'. According to the officer, 'deliberations were on' about sending the black boxes to the US where the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) could help recover the recordings with advanced expertise. The wreckage of the Dreamliner, the officer said, had 'not hinted' at any cockpit error, and the pilots 'may have tried their best to gain manual control' for attempting a turnaround. 'It does not appear to be a cockpit error… The observations are that the power failure occurred as soon as the flight was airborne and was unable to climb to the safe path altitude… the (Boeing) 787 Dreamliner has a provision for a manual reversion control system to allow pilots to regain control of critical systems in the event of a hydraulic failure. This system is a backup, using RAT to generate power, but there was no altitude cushion to ensure a safe glide downward or for the pilot to attempt anything… It just dropped on to the medical hostel building, with the tail being impacted and separated due to its liftoff position. Had it achieved an elevation of about 3600-4900 feet, it could have been a different story as planes can safely make Mayday landings with the RAT,' the officer said. AI-171 had gained an altitude of only 625 feet when it came crashing down. The officer said that while probing the cause of engine failure, the most crucial aspect would be an analysis of the technical log of the aircraft for the preceding 24 to 48 hours to ascertain if any technical abnormalities had been experienced or noted down by the previous captains or maintenance staff. 'The aircraft was incoming from Paris to Delhi and from Delhi to Ahmedabad… In fact, it made a round trip to Paris from Delhi on June 11-12. 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The UK AAIB team is comparing notes with the February 2020 Gatwick incident findings. 'The entire duration of the flight was 11 minutes, as per the investigation of the UK AAIB… The incident was almost similar, except that the flight had gained an altitude of almost 3580 feet and was able to make the roundabout and touch down after declaring Mayday thrice… The findings of the investigation had concluded that the reason for the engine failure was fuel system contamination even though the engineers had found no fault prior to clearing it for flying that night,' the officer said. 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