At least 265 dead in Air India crash; one survivor

An Air India jetliner bound for London crashed into a residential area of Ahmedabad on Thursday, killing at least 265 people on board and on the ground, according to officials. One passenger was miraculously pulled from the wreckage alive.

The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, carrying 242 passengers and crew, went down shortly after takeoff, slamming into a medical staff hostel and nearby buildings in a blaze of fire and smoke.

An AFP journalist at the scene saw the rear of the aircraft hanging from a building and bodies being recovered from charred debris. Rescue teams worked through the night, aided by sniffer dogs, as authorities launched a formal investigation into the cause.

"The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said following the crash of Flight 171. "It is heartbreaking beyond words."

Deputy Commissioner of Police Kanan Desai said, “265 bodies have reached the hospital,” indicating that at least 24 people were killed on the ground.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed the aircraft issued a mayday call before it “crashed immediately after takeoff.” Ahmedabad, the main city in Gujarat state, is surrounded by densely populated neighborhoods, complicating rescue efforts.

A doctor named Krishna, who witnessed the crash, described the devastation. “One half of the plane crashed into the residential building where doctors lived with their families. The nose and front wheel landed on the canteen building where students were having lunch,” he said.

He added that he saw “about 15 to 20 burnt bodies” and helped rescue around 15 students.

India’s civil aviation authority confirmed that two pilots and 10 cabin crew were among those on board. Air India said the passengers included 169 Indians, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the crash “devastating,” while King Charles III said he was “desperately shocked.”

Despite the scale of the disaster, one person survived. State health official Dhananjay Dwivedi told AFP, “one survivor is confirmed” and was hospitalized. Air India later said the survivor, a British national of Indian origin, was being treated.

Lone survivor

He was identified as 40-year-old Vishwash Kumar Ramesh. His brother, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, told the Press Association in the UK, “He said, ‘I have no idea how I exited the plane.’”

Witnesses described scenes of horror. Resident Poonam Patni said, “When we reached the spot, there were several bodies lying around and firefighters were dousing the flames. Many of the bodies were burned.”

The crash marks what appears to be the first major accident involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Boeing said it was in contact with Air India and “ready to support them.”

The UK and US air accident investigation agencies are sending teams to assist Indian authorities.

Tata Group, which owns Air India, announced financial aid of 10 million rupees (about $117,000) to the families of each person killed, along with medical support for the injured.

Experts said it was too soon to determine the cause of the crash. Jason Knight, senior lecturer in fluid mechanics at the University of Portsmouth, said a double engine failure, possibly from a bird strike, was a plausible scenario.

India has experienced several major air disasters in recent decades, including a 1996 mid-air collision over New Delhi that killed nearly 350 people, and a 2010 crash in Mangalore that left 158 dead.

The crash comes amid a boom in India’s aviation industry. The country recently became the world’s fourth-largest air travel market and is expected to rise to third within the next decade, according to the International Air Transport Association.