20 hours Ago
Details of a Crash and of Rescue Attempts
The flight was bound for London's Gatwick Airport and had 230 passengers and 12 crew members. It took off when suddenly lost height and crashed in the Meghaninagar locality of Ahmedabad. A bystander filmed the plane fighting to ascend just before it burst to the ground.
The dead included 169 Indians, 53 British, seven Portuguese and one Canadian who had been aboard the flight. The sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who was sitting in seat 11A, is being treated at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. Among the dead was former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.
There was prompt action by Army, NDRF, CISF, and fire services at the crash site," a home ministry official said. The heat intensified to almost 1,000 degrees celsius since over 1.25 lakh litres of jet fuel from the aircraft had ignited, rescue workers said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said it become nearly impossible for people to survive in the blaze's intensity.
Investigation and Response
The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, called the crash "stunning and saddening" and visited the site of the accident and the hospital. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has opened a formal investigation in accordance with international rules, and a forensic team has been deployed to the scene.
The Director General of Civil Aviation said that the pilot sent out a 'Mayday' signal before the contact was lost. The crash is the first for a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a passenger aircraft that has been in commercial use since 2011. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg offered condolences and said technical experts would help with the investigation.
Foreign leaders also reacted. British PM Keir Starmer said British authorities are in contact with India and US president Donald Trump described the crash as a "horrific accident" and said they are ready to aid.
The parent company of Air India, the Tata Group, announced compensation of ₹1 rather of each of the victims' families as well as medical treatment of the injured and help for the reconstruction of the medical college's hostel in question.
