Air India plane with 242 on board crashes at India's Ahmedabad airport

An Air India aircraft en route to London with 242 passengers on board crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad, a city in western India, on Thursday, according to statements from the airline and local police. They did not confirm if there were any casualties.

Wreckage of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner lies at the site where the Air India plane crashed in Ahmedabad, India

Flight 171 crashed into a doctors' hostel in the densely populated Meghani area shortly after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport.

Astonishingly, a British father was seen walking away from the wreckage, just as Indian police reported there were likely no survivors.

The man, 40-year-old Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, told local media from his hospital bed: “Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed. It all happened so quickly.”

The plane carried 242 passengers but at least 260 people, including some victims on the ground, are thought to have died.

Over 241 people have been confirmed dead, and the toll is expected to rise further.

Among the passengers were 53 British nationals. The flight was scheduled to land in London around 6:25 PM.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the crash “heartbreaking beyond words.” Sir Keir Starmer and King Charles are being kept updated on the situation.

The flight was bound for Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom, Air India noted. Meanwhile, law enforcement authorities reported that the aircraft went down in a populated area close to the airport.

Flightradar24, an aviation monitoring website, identified the plane as a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, a state-of-the-art model in commercial aviation.

This morning, the Gatwick-bound plane carrying 242 passengers, including 53 British nationals, crashed just moments after take-off from Ahmedabad Airport in the northwestern Indian state of Gujarat

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner careened back down to earth in the densely populated Meghani area of the city just minutes after leaving the runway around 1.40pm local time (8.10am BST). 

Air hostess Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam was named by local media as being on board the ill-fated Flight 171

“At present, we are in the process of verifying all information and will provide updates as we receive them,” Air India posted on X.

Reports from television outlets indicated the plane went down during takeoff. One broadcast showed the aircraft flying over a neighborhood before vanishing from view, followed by a massive burst of flames and smoke rising above the rooftops.

The sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who was seated in 11A, is also British and told the Hindustan Times he had lived in London for 20 years.

The sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh (pictured) , who was seated in 11A, is British and told the Hindustan Times he had lived in London for 20 years

Footage also depicted burning wreckage and heavy black smoke billowing near the airport premises.

Further visuals captured emergency teams transporting individuals on stretchers and ambulances rushing from the scene.

According to air traffic controllers at Ahmedabad Airport, the aircraft departed from runway 23 at 1:39 p.m. (0809 GMT). It issued a distress call—“Mayday”—signaling an emergency situation, but no contact was received after that point.

This is the first picture of First Officer Clive Kunder, from Mumbai, he was on the doomed Air India that crashed moments after take-off

Flightradar24 also confirmed it lost signal from the aircraft just seconds post-takeoff.

“The plane involved is a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner registered under VT-ANB,” the site stated.

Boeing has yet to issue a statement in response to the incident.

India's most recent fatal aviation accident took place in 2020 and also involved an aircraft operated by Air India Express, the carrier's budget airline division.

That incident occurred when a Boeing 737 overshot a table-top runway at Kozhikode International Airport in the southern region of the country. The plane lost control, crashed into a gorge, and struck the ground nose-first.

Family members of one of the crew members of Air India flight 171 mourn at their residence in Thoubal Mayai Leikai near Imphal -- June 12, 2025

At a Glance: Air India Flight 171 Crash

• Crash Location: Air India Flight 171 crashed into a medical college in Meghani shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad at 1:17 PM local time.

• Aircraft & Route: Boeing 787 Dreamliner en route to London Gatwick.

• On Board: 242 people total — 230 passengers, 10 crew, 2 pilots; 53 were British nationals.

• Survivor: One British passenger, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh (40), miraculously survived with chest, eye, and foot injuries.

• Victims: Included wellness guru Jamie Ray Meek and his husband Fin.

• Crash Details: Mayday call issued; the plane reached 825 feet before a sudden descent.

• Footage: Shows the aircraft struggling to lift off before crashing.

• Compensation: Tata Sons to pay approx. £86,000 to families of victims.

• Reactions: PM Modi called it "heartbreaking"; King Charles said he was "desperately shocked."

• Emergency Response: Ongoing at the crash site — one of India's worst aviation disasters

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