Air India crash report leaves more questions than answers
The report included a cockpit transcript where pilots discussed who turned off the fuel, with one denying it, and experts state it is not easy to accidentally cut off fuel switches.
The London Gatwick -bound flight crashed moments after taking off from Ahmedabad airport, killing all but one of the 242 people on board and approximately 19 on the ground.
Despite the fuel switches being returned to normal and engines attempting to recover, both had lost thrust, causing the plane to come down in a residential area.
Victims' families are seeking justice and answers, expressing deep concerns about the findings and calling for full transparency and accountability in the ongoing investigation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
British Air India families are sent the WRONG bodies: Grieving loved ones are returned caskets with unknown passengers inside
The repatriation of Britons killed in the Air India disaster has been horrifically bungled, the Daily Mail can reveal. Bereaved families are suffering fresh heartache because the remains of their loved ones were wrongly identified before being flown home. Relatives of one victim had to abandon funeral plans after being informed that their coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger rather than their family member. In another distressing case, the 'commingled' remnants of more than one person killed in the crash were mistakenly placed in the same casket. They had to be separated before the internment could go ahead last weekend. The shocking blunders only emerged when Inner West London coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox sought to verify the repatriated Britons' identities by matching their DNA with samples provided by the families. Tonight, a top-level inquiry into the scandal is underway in London and India, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to raise concerns with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on his state visit to Britain this week. Though two instances of mistaken identity have so far come to light, there are fears that more such errors could have been made, leaving families under a shadow of uncertainty. Pictured: Debris at the site of a plane crash near Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport Pictured: Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, the sole survivor of the Air India flight 171 crash Pictured: Thick black smoke billowing from a residential area after Air India flight 171 crashed in Ahmedabad Of the 261 people who died when Air India flight 171 lost power and crashed, seconds after leaving Ahmedabad for London Gatwick, 52 were returning Britons. And while some victims were either speedily cremated or buried in India, in accordance with their religious beliefs, aviation lawyer James Healy-Pratt, who represents many of the British families, says the remains of at least 12 have been repatriated. Mr Healy-Pratt was enlisted to uncover the full facts behind the catastrophe - caused when the Dreamliner's fuel supply was either intentionally or accidentally switched off, according to a preliminary report - and fight for compensation in the courts. But this week he is investigating the botched identification process. 'I've been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back,' he told the Mail. 'But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. It has been going on for a couple of weeks (and) I think these families deserve an explanation.' Though the family who received 'commingled' remains had been able to have them separated and hold a funeral service, he said, the second set of relatives - whom he called Family X - had been left 'in limbo'. 'Family X have no-one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket. And if isn't their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it's another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains. Pictured: People carrying the body of a victim from the crash site after Air India flight 171 crashed in Ahmedabad Pictured: The Air India flight 171 stuck on the side of the building after the crash Pictured: The aftermath of the Air India plane crash. Within three days the remains of virtually all the victims were believed to have been found, although the 1500C heat had burnt most beyond recognition 'The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.' The lawyer is now trying to establish the precise chain of events in the recovery and identification process, beginning when the bodies were pulled from the jet's smouldering wreckage and ending when they reached Britain. It will be no easy task. For arriving in India in the aftermath of the disaster on June 12, grieving British families were incensed by the chaotic ground operation and immediately recognised the danger of misidentification. One relative criticised the 'lack of transparency and oversight in the identification and handling of remains', and there were calls for a British-run ID unit to be flown in. 'Our loved ones were British citizens. They deserved better in life. They certainly deserved better in death,' was one embittered refrain. The operation to recover remains began soon after the plane crashed into a medical hostel and houses near Ahmedabad airport. It was led by local recovery teams from Ahmedabad's police and fire departments and the state disaster response force. They used sniffer dogs and hi-tech search equipment and were aided by local volunteers who sifted the twisted, smouldering metal with their hands. Within three days the remains of virtually all the victims were believed to have been found, although the 1500C heat had burnt most beyond recognition. Others were mutilated or fragmented by the force of the impact. Pictured: Rescue workers at the site of the crash. The repatriation of Britons killed in the Air India disaster has been horrifically bungled, the Daily Mail can reveal Pictured: Ambulances waiting to transfer the dead bodies of victims from the hospital complex in Ahmedabad on June 14, 2025 It meant that many families received their remains from the Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad - which served as the central ID hub - in a plastic container, rather than a coffin. Relatives were asked to supply DNA samples to be used as identification but in the most severe cases they had to be matched against dental records. Families could only rely on officials to carry out the process accurately and label the containers correctly. 'Nobody looked at the remains. We weren't allowed to,' said Altaf Taju, from Blackburn, whose London-based parents Adam, 72 and Hasina, 70, perished along with their son-on-law Altafhusen Patel, 51. 'They just said, "This is your mother or father", and gave us a paper label with an ID number on it. We had to take their word for it. It's horrific that this could have happened, but what could anyone do?' Mr Taju was told of the mix-up by a police liaison officer. He takes comfort from the fact that his parents and brother-in-law were not involved in the confusion because they were buried quickly, in India, to comply with their Muslim faith. By June 28, Indian authorities claimed DNA tests had conformed the identities of all 260 fatalities. Those victims flown back to Britain were transported by Air India, though some families complained of unnecessary delays and lack of information from the airline. Approached by the Mail, Dr Wilcox said it would be inappropriate for her to comment. Pictured: A policeman and medics transferring bodies of victims onto an ambulance after the Air India Flight 171 crash Pictured: Debris at the site of a plane crash near Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad Mr Healy-Pratt added: 'On the known evidence, the chain of custody of these lost loved ones was unacceptably poor. 'We are investigating the causes of those failures and demanding answers on behalf of these deserving British families. 'We await formal responses from Air India, and their emergency response contractors - Kenyons International Emergency Services. 'The families are also directly in contact with their MPs, the FCDO and the offices of the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary- ahead of Premier Modi's visit to London this week.'
The Independent
9 hours ago
- The Independent
Hero teachers killed trying to save children from Bangladesh fighter jet blast
At least three teachers died trying to get young children to safety after a fighter jet crashed into a school in Bangladesh 's capital on Monday, killing at least 31 people in one of the worst aviation disasters in the country's history. So far 25 school pupils, most of them under the age of 12, have been reported killed in the crash which saw a Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft come down on top of a school building in Dhaka 's densely populated Uttara neighbourhood. The members of the school's faculty who were killed include Mahrein Chowdhury, a 46-year-old school administrator, sustained 80 per cent burns while trying to escort students out of the Hyder Ali Hall building at the school when the F-7 BGI crashed into the school, about 12 minutes after its takeoff from a nearby military facility. Chowdhury was escorting students to meet their parents when the aircraft crashed into the gate of the building. Despite being severely burned herself, Chowdhury helped take 20 students to safety. Hours later, she succumbed to her injuries in hospital. "She didn't get out first from her building when it caught fire, instead tried to get as many students out but ended up suffering 100 per cent burns, said her brother, Munaf Mojib Chowdhury. He recalled his elder sister as a mother-like figure who had helped to raise him. Mahrein Chowdhury was buried on Tuesday in her family graveyard beside her parents. Two other teachers are known to have succumbed to their burn injuries, a senior teacher who was present in the next building at the time of the disaster, told The Independent, though the overall death toll from the crash has continued to rise throughout Tuesday. The crash took place shortly after 1pm when students were leaving exams and teachers were busy checking papers, according to the senior teacher, who asked not to be named because he was not authorised to speak on behalf of the school. He recalled hearing a loud sound – comparing it to a bomb blast – when the aircraft first crashed into a school building. "The school is near an air force base, so we are used to the noise of fighter aircraft, but this was extraordinarily loud. At first glance, I couldn't spot anything, but seconds later, a thick stream of smoke started coming out of the building," he recalled. The senior teacher saw dozens of injured students – mostly those with minor injuries – running toward the school's medical room on the lower floor, while many other pupils were trapped under debris on the second floor. Army personnel stationed nearby rushed to the school as the fire from the blast intensified and spread rapidly about 15 minutes after the crash, leading to more fatalities. Ambulances and a helicopter arrived at the scene shortly after. "As the fire spread, we were asked to move toward the playing field. Everyone was evacuated to the grounds to make space for the ambulance and the helicopter to take the pupils to the nearest hospitals," the senior teacher said. "Everyone who could help, including teachers, staff and pupils, jumped in to the rescue without thinking twice." Doctors said late on Monday that about two dozen people remained in a critical condition, out of a total 165 injured. A blood donation camp has been opened at a specialised burns hospital where most of the injured were being treated. Twenty bodies have been handed over to their families, with some needing DNA matching after they were charred beyond recognition. Many relatives waited overnight at the burns hospital while identification processes were carried out. Nasima Begum was among the mothers whose children were admitted to the hospital after suffering severe burns in the crash. Her son, who studies in grade seven, was playing when the crash happened, Ms Begum told The Independent. "He's completely burned," she said. "It has been more than 24 hours, his state is critical. The doctors are not saying anything positive. This is the second hospital we have had to take him," she said, as she prayed to Allah to save her son. Rubina Akter said her son Raiyan Toufiq had a miraculous escape after his shirt caught fire when he was on a staircase. "He sprinted to the ground floor and jumped on the grass to douse it," she told Reuters. "He tore his shirt and vest inside which saved him from severe burns." Another student who had already left the classroom after finishing his exam told BBC Bangla: "My best friend, the one I was in the exam hall with, he died right in front of my eyes." Rescue workers continued to scour the charred buildings for debris on Tuesday as distressed residents of the area looked on. Abul Hossain mourned his nine-year-old daughter after saying his final goodbye on Monday night. "I took her to school yesterday morning like every day. I had no idea it would be the last time I would be seeing her," he said. The pilot, Flight Lt Mohammed Toukir Islam, who died in the crash, made "every effort to divert the aircraft away from densely populated areas toward a more sparsely inhabited location," the military said. The Chinese-made F-7 BGI training aircraft experienced a "technical malfunction" moments after takeoff from the AK Khandaker air force base at 1.06 pm local time on Monday, the military added. It was the pilot's first solo flight as he was completing his training course. It remained unclear if he managed to eject before the jet hit the building. The Bangladesh air force said it has launched a formal investigation. The government declared Tuesday was a day of mourning, with flags at half-mast and special prayers at all places of worship as hundreds of students protested near the site of the crash. The Milestone school is located about 11km from the air force base in a densely populated area near a metro station and numerous shops and homes. The protesting students transparency over the numbers and identities of the dead and injured, compensation for their families, and an immediate halt to the use of "outdated and unsafe" training aircraft by the Bangladesh Air Force. They chanted slogans and accused security officials of beating them and manhandling teachers. The students angrily confronted two senior government advisers who arrived to visit the scene, forcing them to take cover for six hours inside the school campus before additional security forces arrived and escorted them out. Scores of students suffered injuries after police charged them with batons after they broke through security barricades and entered the Bangladesh Secretariat complex, elsewhere across the capital. Security fired tear gas and used stun grenades to disperse the crowd. Monday's plane crash was the deadliest aviation incident in the Bangladeshi capital in decades. In 2008, another F-7 training jet crashed outside Dhaka, killing its pilot, who had ejected after he discovered a technical problem. Bangladesh's F-7 is a modern variant of China's Chengdu F-7, itself modelled on the Soviet MiG-21. While considered outdated by global standards, it remains in service due to its cost-effectiveness and suitability for pilot training and limited combat roles. Its production ceased after China delivered the last of 16 units of F-7 BGIs to Bangladesh in 2013. The incident comes as neighbour India is still grappling with the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade after an Air India plane crashed into a medical college hostel in Ahmedabad city in Gujarat last month, killing 241 of the 242 people on board and 19 on the ground.
Times
a day ago
- Times
‘Total failure of justice': all convicted of Mumbai train blasts acquitted
When bomb blasts ripped through the carriages of packed commuter trains and two stations during Mumbai's evening rush hour on July 11, 2006, India's prime minister vowed to defeat the terrorists and secure justice for the victims. But 19 years on from the carnage of the attacks, which left 189 dead and more than 800 injured, justice remains elusive. On Monday, 12 Muslim men who were convicted of planting the bombs were acquitted after the prosecution case against them was found to be based on forced confessions and unreliable evidence. The suspects, who were accused of being Pakistani separatists, were convicted in 2015 for one of India's worst terror attacks. Five of the men were sentenced to death, while the other seven were given life imprisonment, pending an appeal. A decade on from the conviction, judges at the Bombay High Court found the prosecution had 'utterly failed to prove their case against the accused'. 'It is hard to believe that the accused committed the crime. Hence their conviction is quashed and set aside,' Justices Anil Kilor and Shyam Chandak said. The men were ordered to be released from jail 'if they are not required to be detained in any other case'. During the 2006 attacks, seven bombs placed inside pressure cookers to maximise the intensity of the blasts went off within minutes of each other, causing horrific casualties. One surgeon described his hospital in the aftermath of the attacks as 'bloodier than an abattoir' in a report published on the front page of The Times the next day. Prosecutors said the devices were assembled in Mumbai and deliberately placed in first-class coaches to target the city's wealthy Gujarati community. They said the bombings were intended as revenge for the riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002, which left some 2,000 people dead, most of them Muslims. Prosecutors accused the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba of being behind the attacks, although a little-known outfit called Lashkar-e-Qahhar later claimed responsibility. • Times report, 2006: 7 bombs, 10 minutes, 160 dead On Monday the judges spoke witheringly of police failures to prove what kind of bombs were used. The explosives and arms presented as evidence appeared 'unrelated to the blasts,' they said. Eye witnesses presented by the prosecution were also deemed unreliable, as many of them made statements to the police months or even years after the bombing. The judges observed that it was unlikely they would remember the accused after such a long period. 'The defence had raised serious questions about the test identification parade. Many witnesses remained silent for unusually long periods, some over four years, and then suddenly identified the accused. This is abnormal,' the judges noted. Apparent confessions by the accused, they concluded, were likely to have been obtained through coercion. One of those convicted, Kamal Ansari, died in 2021 from coronavirus while in jail. The remaining 11 have spent 19 years behind bars. Monday's acquittal does not mean the saga is over, as the prosecution can appeal against the order to the Supreme Court in Delhi. Given that cases move very slowly through India's judicial system, and that it took a decade for the convictions to be overturned, the men are likely to remain behind bars for months if not years. Rebecca Mammen John, a lawyer at the Supreme Court, said the investigation and prosecution did 'a disservice both to the people framed who spent years behind bars and to the families of the victims who are left without justice'. 'When you don't have a robust investigation and you have fabricated evidence, you are letting down an entire community of people who deserve better than this,' she added. 'This is a total failure of the justice delivery system.'
