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Horrific History Repeats Itself With Air India Crash: Tragic Tales Of Two Flight 171s
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Though separated by time, aircraft type, and technological advancement, both flights—IC 171 (1976) and AI 171/AIC 171 (2025)—share more than a chilling flight number
In a haunting twist of aviation fate, Air India flight AI 171 (also listed as AIC 171) crashed on Thursday in Ahmedabad, killing more than 260 people, including those on board and some on the ground. As the nation mourns one of the deadliest aviation disasters in Indian history, grim parallels are being drawn to another tragedy: Indian Airlines flight IC 171, which ended in flames nearly five decades ago, in 1976.
Though separated by time, aircraft type, and technological advancement, both flights—IC 171 (1976) and AI 171/AIC 171 (2025)—share more than a chilling flight number. They also share the horror of witnesses watching helplessly from the ground as the disaster unfolded.
Both planes were marvels of their own time with twin engines.
Two Flights, Two Fireballs, Witnessed from Terminal
IC 171, a Sud Aviation Caravelle operated by Indian Airlines, was on a domestic route from Mumbai to Chennai when it caught fire just after takeoff from Bombay's Santacruz Airport on October 12, 1976. As the right engine failed, the plane tried to return but plunged into the airfield perimeter in flames. 95 of 100 people onboard died.
Importantly, airport staff and passengers at the terminal witnessed the aircraft trailing flames and crashing—a traumatic sight that would linger in collective memory.
On Thursday, AI 171/AIC 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, issued a 'Mayday" minutes after takeoff. At an altitude of less than 1,000 feet, the aircraft reportedly lost control and nose-dived into a residential hostel near the airport, creating a massive fireball.
Once again, people inside Ahmedabad airport—travellers and ground crew alike—watched in horror as the widebody aircraft descended rapidly and exploded, just beyond the airport boundary.
Two Eras, One Tragic Rhythm
In 1976, IC 171 flew in an age of rudimentary diagnostics and limited real-time monitoring. The Caravelle, elegant and quiet, was among India's early jets—but its design could not counteract a fire midair. Despite the crew's efforts, the aircraft succumbed in full view of those on the ground.
In 2025, AI 171 flew a Dreamliner—a machine of modern marvels, equipped with advanced avionics, fly-by-wire controls, and constant data streaming. Yet, like its predecessor, it failed to escape catastrophe in the critical moments just after takeoff. And again, the crash was witnessed in real time by those on airport grounds, their shock echoing the scenes from 49 years earlier.
Flight 171: A Number Now Again in Grief
Though the aviation industry usually treats flight numbers as arbitrary, the recurrence of '171" in two major Indian air disasters is unsettling.
While globally ominous flight numbers in global aviation, like Flight 191, have appeared in multiple fatal crashes across different airlines, now Flight 171 joins those tragic ranks—a numerical thread linking two eras of heartbreak.
History rarely repeats itself with such haunting symmetry. But the tale of Flight 171—twice—reminds us that in aviation, tragedy can echo through time, through numbers, and through the eyes of those who watched helplessly from below.
