Air India AI 171 passenger flight crashes in Ahmedabad

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Ahmedabad, India (AP) – Air India plane heading to London Crash fell in a residential area The airline said Ahmedabad killed 241 people shortly after taking off on Thursday. One passenger who was thrown from the plane survived.

At least five medical students were killed in a university hostel when the plane crashed into a building and sparked fire, according to medical association officials.

“Most of the bodies are not recognized,” said Vidi Chaudhary, a top state police officer in Northwestern.

India's Home Minister Amit Shah confirmed that he had met the only survivor at the hospital. The doctor said he had looked into the survivors he identified as Vishwashkumar Ramesh.

“He was confused by multiple injuries throughout his body,” Dr. Dabal Gamety told The Associated Press. “But it seems he's out of danger.”

According to another Medic, Ramesh told him that he began to descend shortly after the plane took off, suddenly split into two, and abandoned him before it exploded loudly.

Black smoke swirling from the site A plane crashed near the airport in Ahmedabad, a city of over 5 million people, and the capital of Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's capital.

Firefighters absorbed the plane's smoking wreckage. The plane was fully loaded with fuel shortly after takeoff, with adjacent multistory buildings equipped with water. The burnt body lay on the ground, with parts of its torso scattered around the site. Indian Army teams were helping civil authorities clean up the debris and helping to treat the injured.

Social media videos showed the jet slowly descending as if it had landed. As soon as it disappeared from the view behind the line of the house, a giant fireball filled the sky. The AP was able to verify the video by matching the flight path from the runway to the plane with the collision site and the nearby residential area.

On the crash site, Aircraft tail cone The damaged stabilizer fins were still installed and remained near the top of one of the building.

Others may be buried in debris

In a social media post, Modi called Crash “a heartbreaking word” and said “everyone has been influenced by my thoughts.”

Sambit Patra, a MP for Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, said Vijay Rupani, the former chief minister of Gujarat, was among the dead.

Diviansh Singh, vice president of the All India Medical Association Federation, said at least five students from the medical college were killed on the ground and 50 others were injured. Singh said some of them were in danger and many people were “feeling buried in debris.”

Air India confirmed in a statement posted to X that 229 passengers and 12 crew members were killed in the crash. The only survivor was of British Indian origin. The boundary to London Gatwick Airport was 169 Indians, 53 British, seven Portuguese and one Canadian passenger).

“Our efforts are fully focused on the needs of all the people affected, their families and loved ones,” the airline said.

The first crash of the Boeing 787

According to the Air Safety Network Database, this is the first crash of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Boeing said it was “working to gather more information.”

India's aviation regulator said the aircraft gave a Mayday call, signaling an emergency but did not respond to the airport's traffic control call.

Aviation consultant John M. Cox, CEO of the Safety Operating System, told the Los Angeles AP that the first image of the collision was poor, but the aircraft looked like it had raised its nose and hadn't climbed.

“The 787 has a very extensive flight data monitoring. The parameters of the flight data recorder are in thousands, so once you get that recorder, you can know pretty quickly what happened,” he said.

According to the Flightradar24 website, the wide-body twin-engine aircraft was introduced in 2009, delivering over 1,000 people to dozens of airlines.

The UK promises support

British Prime Minister Kiel Starmer said his government has been in constant contact with Indian authorities and has encouraged loved ones of passengers on flights at Air India to contact the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“Our mind and our thoughts are absolutely with the friends and family of all the people affected who are absolutely shattered by this terrible news,” Starmer said.

British minister Lucy Powell said the government will provide “everything possible” to those affected by the crash.

The UK has very close ties with India. According to the 2021 British Census, there were around 1.9 million people in Indian countries.

The meaning of sadness was also poured into King Charles III. Charles III said he and his wife, Queen Camilla, were “deeply shocked” by the crash.

“Our special prayers and deepest sympathy lie in the family and friends of all those affected by this terrifyingly tragic incident in so many countries,” he said in a statement.

Previous Air Damage in India

The last major passenger plane crash in India was in 2020. Air India Express Boeing-737 Slid off the runway on the hill In southern India, 21 people are killed.

India's worst air disaster occurred on November 12, 1996, when a Saudi Airlines flight collided into the air on a Kazakhstan Airlines flight near Sharkidadri in Haryana, killing all 349 people on two planes.

Boeing is like that In recovery mode For over 6 years Lion Air Flight 610the Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia a few minutes after taking off from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. Five months later, Ethiopia Airlines 302 Flightthe Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed after taking off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing 157 passengers and crew.

Boeing's shares fell nearly 9% before it opened in the US

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Roy reported from New Delhi. Associated Press authors Aijaz Hussain and Sheikh Saaliq are Sheikh Saaliq of Srinagar, India. London's Panpira, Kelvinchan, and Brian Merley. And Bangkok's Anica Walters, David Rising, Adam Shrek and Lorian Beranger contributed to the report.