A tragedy in the air. Boeing 787 Dreamliner of the Air India line crashed today just after taking off from Ahmedabad Airport, flying to London with 242 people on board.
Aviation crash details
Air India flight AI171 took off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Airport in Ahmedabad around 10:08 local time. The machine was heading for London's Gatwick Airport, but only a minute after takeoff it disappeared from radar at just 625 feet.
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a densely populated residential area of Meghani Nagar, just off the airport bypass. From the scene of the crash, there are dense clusters of black smoke that are visible from a distance.
The film from Disaster
Passengers on board the aircraft
There were a total of 242 passengers, 232 passengers and 12 crew members on board. Among the travelers were:
- 169 Indian nationals
- 53 UK nationals
- 7 Portuguese nationals
- 1 Canadian citizen
Among the passengers were 217 adults and 11 children. The aircraft had a capacity of 256 seats.
Rescue action in progress
Emergency response
The fire department, police and rescue teams immediately moved to the crash site. The action also included teams of National Emergency Response Force (NDRF). The thick smoke, however, makes rescue efforts much more difficult.
Authority response
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah were informed of the situation. Civil Aviation Minister Rammohan Naidu went to the crash site to oversee the rescue action.
Effects on air traffic
Ahmedabad Airport has been closed until further notice. All air operations were halted until the circumstances of the crash were explained.
The cause of the crash remains unknown. Teams from the Aviation Accident Investigation Office (AAIB) and the Directorate-General for Civil Aviation (DGCA) were sent to the site. This is one of India's most tragic air disasters in recent years.
Update
Recent reports from Ahmedabad provide more and more details about the Air India disaster. According to the latest reports, the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed near the hostel of one of the medical colleges in the Meghani Nagar district, which caused panic among students and university staff. Preliminary reports say at least 40 students who have been declared missing – some witnesses claim to have seen burnt bodies in the ruins of the building.
Both rescue services and local authorities continue to carry out search and rescue operations, but intense fire and a large amount of fuel on board the aircraft impede work at the site. At present, the official death toll has not yet been confirmed, although media reports that at least 30 bodies have already been found in one of the buildings.
Most of the passengers and crew were citizens of India, the United Kingdom, Portugal and Canada, but the tragic consequences of the disaster also affected the local community, including students and residents of neighboring homes.
The civil aviation ministry and international research teams, including Boeing experts, prepare for a detailed investigation into the causes of the accident.
Both local authorities and the central government stress that the priority now is to help victims and support the families of victims. All flights to and from Ahmedabad remain suspended until further notice.
