Latest news with #AI-717
Mint
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Mint
Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Did Turkish Technic service maintain AI-717 Dreamliner? Here's what Turkiye officials say
Amid Baba Ramdev alleged involvement of a Turkish maintenance agency behind Air India AI-717 plane crash, the Turkish government has denied the involvement of Turkish Technic in the maintenance of the Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The communication wing of the government on 13 June said that the claim that Turkish Technic maintained the AI-171 aircraft 'is false' and 'constitutes disinformation aimed at manipulating public opinion" on India-Turkey relations. 'The claim that 'the maintenance of the Boeing 787-8 passenger aircraft was carried out by Turkish Technic' following the crash of an Air India passenger aircraft during take-off is false. The claim that the crashed aircraft was maintained by Turkish Technic constitutes disinformation aimed at manipulating public opinion regarding Türkiye-India relations," the Turkish government said on June 13 on X. 'Under the agreements made between Air India and Turkish Technic in 2024 and 2025, maintenance services are provided exclusively for B777-type wide-body aircraft. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner involved in the accident does not fall within the scope of this agreement. To date, Turkish Technic has not conducted maintenance on any Air India aircraft of this type," it added. Though the Turkish authorities acknowledged that they were aware of the firm responsible for the last maintenance of the crashed aircraft, they refrained from revealing the name. "Although we are aware of which company performed the most recent maintenance on the crashed aircraft, it is beyond our scope to make a statement on this matter to avoid further speculation. The Center for Countering Disinformation will continue to monitor and take the necessary measures against efforts that target the reputation of our flagship brands, which represent Türkiye on the international stage," the Turkish government said. Among other things, the Turkish authorities said that they sincerely share the grief of the Indian people over this tragic plane crash, where over 270 people were killed. Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Saturday had alleged the involvement of a Turkish maintenance agency whose contract with Indian airports was terminated in May 2025. 'I got to know that an agency from Turkiye used to take care of the maintenance and service of the aircraft. India will have to keep a close eye on the aviation sector,' Ramdev told ANI news agency. 'There is a possibility of a conspiracy by that agency.' Though he didn't provide any evidence for his claims, but said India must stop allowing foreign companies to interfere in such sensitive matters.
Mint
2 days ago
- General
- Mint
Air India plane crash: Dream of auto driver's daughter to pursue MTech in London ends in tragedy
Days after the horrific Air India flight AI-717 crash, emotional stories of the passengers onboard are coming to the limelight. One such story is of young woman from Gujarat's Himatnagar – Payal Khatik. Payal, daughter of a loading rickshaw boarded an aeroplane to travel out of the country for the first time on Thursday, reported NDTV. She was amongst the 230 passengers on the Air India Ahmedabad-Gatwick flight which crash after just taking off in Ahmedabad. Payal was the first member of the family to board a flight and she was travelling to the United Kingdom, to pursue a Master's degree in engineering and technology. At around 10 am, her family bid a fond adieu to their beloved daughter and went home. However, within hours she was on the list of 241 passengers and crew who lost their lives in the plane crash. The Air India flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed and inked its name in the worst aviation disaster in 15 years. It hit a medical college building in the city, killing 274 people in total. Payal's death was confirmed by DNA analysis a day after the plane crash, and authorities are investigating why this happened. Speaking to ANI, her father, Suresh Khatik said, 'After completing her college, she stayed with us... she wanted to study further in London. So we took out loans to support her education there...' Suresh stated that he took loans hoping Payal's future job would help pay back and support the family. But now, they have no way to pay back the loans. "She was the first member of our family to travel abroad... she was going to London. She completed her BTech from Udaipur and was going for MTech. But this tragic incident happened. Our family is deeply saddened..." her cousin, Bharat Chauhan, told another news agency IANS. As per the details, Payel hailed from Rajasthan's Udaipur, who studied from Class I to Class X at the Adarsh School in Himatnagar. She completed her Class XI and XII from the Himat High School, added NDTV. "She was educated. She has brothers and sisters... and her father is a driver. But the financial condition of her family was not good," Payal's family friend Sushila Pathak said, whose son she had been tutoring for the past six years. Another relative said, "The financial condition of the family is not good. Payal used to take care of the family by giving tuition to the students..." Earlier on Thursday afternoon, Air India flight AI717 – from Ahmedabad to London's Gatwick – crashed soon after the take off. There were 230 passengers and 10 crew members onboard. However, only one survived the crash. Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, is carrying out the checks on the nation's 787s, Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said in a press briefing on Saturday in New Delhi. The minister added that the government had set up a special multi-department team to investigate all the non-technical aspects around the crash and has been given three months to report. India's accident investigation bureau is in charge of probing the technical aspects behind the plane crash. To determine what caused the aircraft to fail in the deadliest aviation accident in more than a decade, the investigators have been surveying the wreckage of Air India flight AI171. Investigative teams from the UK and US arrived Friday in Ahmedabad to assist with the crash probe.
