Latest news with #A1-171
The Hindu
a day ago
- General
- The Hindu
The Hindu Morning Digest: June 13, 2025
Air India confirms 241 out of 242 aboard AI171 dead Air India said that 241 people, out of the 242 on board AI171, died in the tragic crash of the Ahmedabad-London flight. 'The aircraft crashed shortly after take-off. We regret to inform that, of the 242 aboard, there are 241 confirmed fatalities. The sole survivor is being treated in a hospital,' Air India said in a statement. Survivor of Air India crash jumped out of emergency exit, police say Ramesh Viswashkumar, the only known survivor out of the 242 people onboard an Air India plane that crashed in Ahmedabad on Thursday (June 12, 2025), had been sitting near an emergency exit of the London-bound flight and managed to jump out, police said. Speaking from his hospital bed, the 40-year-old said that he was a British national and was travelling to Britain with his brother after visiting family in India. Israel launches 'pre-emptive' strikes on Iran amid nuclear tensions Explosions rang out across Iran's capital as Israel claimed it was attacking the country. People in Tehran, Iran, awoke to the sound of the blast. State television acknowledged the blast. Explosions were heard northeast of Iran's capital Tehran early on Friday (June 13, 2025), the state-run Nour News said. However, it said the reasons were not immediately clear. Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz announced a 'special situation' in Israel over the strikes on Iran. He said schools would be closed in the country on Friday. There was no immediate word on what was struck. Ahmedabad air crash: 'We could not determine if the victims were children or adults' The bodies retrieved from the B.J. Medical College premises where the London-bound Air India plane crashed on Thursday (June 12, 2025) were charred, making it difficult to determine if they were children or adults, paramilitary officials involved in the rescue operation told The Hindu. Police Commissioner G.S Malik told The Hindu that 204 bodies were recovered from the crash site, and 41 injured persons were rushed to the hospital. He said the DNA and blood samples of the deceased were being preserved for identification. Ahmedabad air crash: Overloading, 'bird hit' among probable causes, say experts While the causes of the A1-171 flight crash in Ahmedabad are being investigated and information from the flight data and cockpit voice-recorder was awaited, aviation experts theorise — judging from videos of the plane's short flight — that overloading, a potential bird hit and the rare instance of both engines failing could have prevented the air-plane from getting sufficient 'lift' to ascend. Ahmedabad plane crash: Giant plane tears through hostel; some students missing, 60 hurt Over 100 MBBS students of B.J. Medical College at Meghani Nagar in Ahmedabad were having lunch in the boys' hostel mess on Thursday afternoon (June 12, 2025) when an Air India flight to London crashed into the building shortly after take-off. At least five MBBS students, one PG resident doctor and the wife of a superspecialist doctor of the medical college were killed and over 60 medical students injured, the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) said. En route to London to join his family, former Gujarat CM Rupani perishes in crash Former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, 69, was among those who perished in the crash of Air India 171 flight from Ahmedabad to London on Thursday (June 12, 2025), confirmed Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Paatil, who described the loss as one 'deeply felt by the BJP family'. Rupani was en route to London to join his wife and other members of his family. Bengaluru stampede: Karnataka High Court declares arrest of Nikhil Sosale of RCB and others illegal In a major setback for the State government and the police, the High Court of Karnataka on Thursday declared as 'illegal' the arrest of four representatives of Royal Challengers Sports Private Ltd. (RCSPL) and DNA Networks Pvt. Ltd. They were arrested on June 6 in connection with the June 4 stampede outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here during the celebration of RCB's victory in IPL-2025 tournament. Also, the court directed the immediate release of the arrested persons without any delay while granting them interim bail. Modi-Carney meeting on G7 sidelines to focus on bilateral reset: MEA The upcoming meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney will provide an 'important opportunity' to discuss matters of bilateral interest, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday (June 12, 2025). Addressing the weekly media briefing, Mr. Jaiswal noted that mutual security concerns are being addressed through 'existing mechanisms' between both countries. India condemns vandalism at Tagore's ancestral home in Bangladesh India on Thursday (June 12, 2025) 'strongly' condemned the vandalisation of the ancestral home of Rabindranath Tagore in Bangladesh's Sirajganj district. Addressing the weekly press briefing, Randhir Jaiswal, Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said the attack was part of a 'broad pattern' of assaults on the pluralist culture of Bangladesh. One killed as two girders collapse at Metro Rail work site in Chennai Two I-girders launched for building the 3.15 km flyover under the Chennai Metro Rail's phase II corridor in Manapakkam crashed on Thursday (June 12, 2025) night, killing one person who was riding a two-wheeler on the road below. Till late in the night, police personnel and Chennai Metro Rail workers were involved in removing the girders and retrieving the body of the person whose identity was yet to be known. China says approved 'certain number' of rare-earth export licences China said on Thursday (June 12, 2025) it had issued a 'certain number' of licences to export rare earths after U.S. President Donald Trump hailed this week's deal that would see the country provide the vital elements 'up front'. The economic superpowers said after talks in London that they had achieved progress in dialling down a brutal trade war that has roiled markets and threatened global supply chain chaos. U.N. nuclear watchdog board censures Iran, which retaliates by announcing a new enrichment site The U.N. nuclear watchdog's board of governors on Thursday formally found that Iran isn't complying with its nuclear obligations for the first time in 20 years, a move that could lead to further tensions and set in motion an effort to restore United Nations sanctions on Tehran later this year. Iran reacted immediately, saying it will establish a new enrichment facility 'in a secure location' and that 'other measures are also being planned.' Easing food prices push retail inflation down to six-year low of 2.8% in May Retail inflation eased to a 75-month low of 2.8% in May 2025, driven downwards by falling food inflation, according to data released on Thursday. Inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index was last lower than this in February 2019, more than six years ago. Overall, based on the two months of data available for this financial year, retail inflation has averaged 2.99% in 2025-26, the lowest average for the first two months of a financial year since 2017-18. Australia's Cummins rips through South Africa batting in WTC final Australia captain Pat Cummins produced a sensational spell of four wickets for just one run as the title-holders seized control of the World Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord's on Thursday (June 12, 2025). South Africa were bowled out for 138 in reply to Australia's first-innings 212 on the second day with the 30-year-old Cummins finishing with final figures of 6-28 as he went to 300 career Test wickets
The Hindu
2 days ago
- General
- The Hindu
Ahmedabad air crash: Overloading, ‘bird hit' among probable causes, say experts
While the causes of the A1-171 flight crash in Ahmedabad are being investigated and information from the flight data and cockpit voice-recorder was awaited, aviation experts theorise — judging from videos of the plane's short flight — that overloading, a potential bird hit and the rare instance of both engines failing could have prevented the air-plane from getting sufficient 'lift' to ascend. The 787-Dreamliner has maximum take-off weight of 227.9 tonnes and a fuel capacity of 126,206 litres. The twin engines are equipped, even under the worst scenario, to operate for up to 330 minutes on a single engine. 'The odds of both engines failing simultaneously during take-off are quite small or about one in a billion,' Abhay Pashilkar, Director, CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), which designs civilian planes, told The Hindu. A plausible scenario was the plane being overloaded, he explained. This meant an incorrect estimate of the combined weight of the loaded airplane and the quantity of available fuel. This along with the external temperature determines the speed at which the plane must attain to keep rising and a misjudgment on that can cause the plane to stall and drop. 'High temperatures on a hot day can thin out the air, meaning you get less lift from the same speed. Weight, temperature altitude all affect lift. Prior to take-off, the pilots have charts and are informed of the weights and the necessary speeds for specific altitudes,' said Mr. Pashilkar. 'If the pilot didn't hit the appropriate speeds, it would reflect in the flight recorder and we will know.' Growth of grass Aviation expert Capt. Mohan Ranganathan told The Hindu that a 'bird hit,' or birds being sucked into both engines couldn't be ruled out. He explained that growth of grass near the runway during the monsoon season attracts a lot of insects, which in turn, attract birds. 'I suspect bird ingestion may have happened. And from the footage that we have seen, the landing gear did not retract. If that happened, the aircraft could have climbed higher and travelled further and possibly would crossed the residential areas,' said Capt. Ranganathan. In January 2009, an Airbus A320, taking off from the LaGuardia airport, New York city, encountered a flock of birds that caused both engines to malfunction. This led to the pilot taking the unusual decision to land the plane on the Hudson River but in the process, also successfully rescuing all the 155 passengers on board. The Ahmedabad air crash has once again brought the spotlight back on safety with regard to Boeing aircraft, including the Dreamliner. Though this is the first time a Dreamliner has crashed, the aircraft has faced safety issues earlier. The initial lot of Dreamliner aircraft faced heating of batteries and forced groundings of planes. The manufacturer also had halted deliveries of their existing orders and reworked on some design aspects after concerns were raised over design of fuselage. There are more than 1,100 787s in service, with several leading international airlines reliant on them. The two major crashes in recent years that were due to faults on Boeing planes were using the then new 737 Max model, in Indonesia and Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019. Last month, Boeing agreed to a $1.1bn-deal with the U.S. Department of Justice to avoid prosecution over crashes which collectively killed 346 people. To be sure, these weren't Dreamliners.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Air India Ahmedabad-London plane crash: Film personalities Akshay Kumar, Vijay, Allu Arjun react to tragedy
Members of the Indian film fraternity expressed their sadness over the tragic Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025 (Thursday). Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar, Tamil superstar Vijay and Telugu stars Jr NTR, Allu Arjun and Ram Charan reacted to the tragic news on social media. 'Shocked and speechless at the Air India crash. Only prayers at this time,' Akshay wrote on X. Shocked and speechless at the Air India crash. Only prayers at this time 🙏 — Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) June 12, 2025 The Boeing 787 aircraft took off from the airport at 1:39 p.m. with 232 including passengers and crew on board. Reports from the state medical association noted that the aircraft crashed directly on the BJ Medical College UG hostel mess in Meghani Nagar shortly after taking off. The Air India A1-171 flight was bound for London from Ahmedabad. Pushpa star Allu Arjun wrote, 'Heartbroken by the tragic Ahmedabad Air India flight crash. My deepest condolences to the families of the victims. May their souls rest in peace.' Heartbroken by the tragic Ahmedabad Air India flight crash. My deepest condolences to the families of the victims. May their souls rest in peace. Truly heart-wrenching 💔 — Allu Arjun (@alluarjun) June 12, 2025 The aircraft was under the command of Capt Sumit Sabharwal with First Officer Clive Kundar. Capt Sumit Sabharwal is an LTC with 8,200 hours of experience. The copilot had 1,100 hours of flying experience. Tamil superstar-turned-politician Vijay said he was 'deeply saddened by the tragic crash.' 'Heartfelt condolences to bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured,' Vijay Tweeted from his party Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam account @TVKVijayHQ. Deeply saddened by the tragic crash of Air India flight AI171 in Ahmedabad, carrying 242 people on board. Heartfelt condolences to bereaved families. Praying for the speedy recovery of the injured. — TVK Vijay (@TVKVijayHQ) June 12, 2025 'Deeply saddened to know about the unfortunate plane crash in Ahmedabad. My prayers are with all the passengers, crew on board, the affected and their families,' wrote RRR actor Ram Charan. Deeply saddened to know about the unfortunate plane crash in Ahmedabad. My prayers are with all the passengers, crew on board, the affected and their families. — Ram Charan (@AlwaysRamCharan) June 12, 2025 Actor-politician Pawan Kalyan, the founding president of the Jana Sena Party, expressed 'deepest sympathies' to the families affected by the crash. 'I am devastated by the tragic Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad. My heartfelt prayers are with all the passengers and crew onboard,' he wrote. I am devastated by the tragic Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad. My heartfelt prayers are with all the passengers and crew onboard. While we await official updates, I pray and extend my deepest sympathies to the families at this awaiting tough times. May they find strength and… — Pawan Kalyan (@PawanKalyan) June 12, 2025 Sunny Deol, Nani, Sonu Sood, Randeep Hooda, Riteish Deshmukh, Disha Patani, Khushbu Sundar, Suniel Shetty and Sharwanand and others also expressed their condolences and prayed for the victims and families. In light of the tragedy, Netflix India cancelled a screening and fan event of their web series Rana Naidu Season 2 in Mumbai, expressing sympathy and solidarity with those affected by the crash.
