An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (Flight AI171) bound to London crashed soon after takeoff on Thursday afternoon at Ahmedabad Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, in one of the worst aviation accidents in the country in decades. At least 260 people died in the crash, which was the worst air accident in India since 1996. There was one survivor who is presumed to be a miracle.
With 230 passengers and 12 crew members on board, the aircraft crashed into the BJ Medical College compound in the heavily populated Meghani Nagar locality, some 3 km near the airport. The impact led to colossal damage of residential houses and a fireball was generated which swept the area. Ex-Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was among those killed.
Air India said that the flight had 169 Indian nationals, 53 British, 7 Portuguese and 1 Canadian. Amazingly, one of the passengers, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh a British national of Indian origin, survived the crash. His seat was in 11A.
Key Developments
- Impact Zone and Rescue Efforts
The plane crashed in three buildings one of which was a mess hall where medical students were having their meals. Scores of emergency response team members, comprising more than 150 CRPF jawans, were busy throughout the night removing debris and trying to find survivors. - Leadership Response
Prime minister Narendra Modi has offered his condolences and is to visit the crash site. Civil Aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu and Home minister Amit Shah performed the evaluation of the damage and met with local officials. The destruction was termed as unimaginable by Shah. - DNA Identification Underway
Make shift DNA collection centre was established at BJ Medical College to aid in victim identification. The DNA samples of families of the deceased were submitted overnight. - Crash Details and Fuel Load
Amit Shah said that the plane had almost 125000 litres of fuel. The intensity of the fire was aided by the high fuel load and there was not much chance of survival. - Flight Crew Experience
The aircraft was being flown by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal who was a Line Training Captain and had more than 8,200 hours of flying experience. The co-pilot was Clive Kundar who had clocked 1,100 hours. - Flight Path and Emergency Call
At 1:39 PM IST, the flight took off at Runway 23. It made a Mayday signal within seconds. The plane lost contact a few seconds later and crashed before attaining considerable height. - Pay and Benefits
The Tata Group, the owner of Air India, expressed 1 crore compensation per family of the victim. They are trying to help families and liaise with local authorities. - Eyewitness Accounts
A resident of nearby quarters M.S. Prajapati said that the incident was like an earthquake. He said there was a terrific thud, and then a lot of black smoke. - Possible Technical Reason
The descent profile of the aircraft leads to the indication of a power failure by aviation analysts. The precise cause will be ascertained with a formal investigation. - Aircraft History
The involved Boeing 787 Dreamliner handled its initial flight in 2013 and was dispatched to Air India in January 2014. This is the first fatal accident in the 787. - International Reaction
Feedback on condolences has been received throughout the world. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will deploy a team to help in the investigation. President Trump expressed Indian authorities support in all ways.
