Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India]: Following the fatal collision of an Air India flight carrying 242 passengers into a neighboring doctors' hostel shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport, one survivor has been discovered, according to a senior police official. A video of the survivor escaping the area has surfaced online.
Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik confirmed to ANI on a phone call that the police discovered one survivor in seat 11A. He has been hospitalized and is receiving treatment. Nothing can be said regarding the number of fatalities. The death toll could rise because the aircraft went down in a residential neighborhood.
The Boeing 7878 Dreamliner, with 242 passengers including 12 crew members, crashed soon after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday afternoon.
After takeoff, the aircraft crashed here, and following a preliminary enquiry, we learned that the ... plane collided with a building, which is a doctors' hostel, according to Jaipal Singh Rathore, Joint Commissioner of Police, Ahmedabad.
The Boeing 7878 Dreamliner crashed into the doctors' hostel near the airport boundary.
Air India stated that of the 230 passengers, 169 were Indians, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian national.
Air India verifies that flight AI171, which was traveling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, was engaged in an incident today following takeoff. The flight, which took off from Ahmedabad at 1338 hours, was carrying 242 passengers and crew on the Boeing 7878 aircraft. Of these, 169 are Indian nationals, 53 are British nationals, 1 Canadian national, and 7 Portuguese nationals. The injured are being transported to the nearest hospitals. We've also established a specific passenger hotline, 1800 5691 444, to answer any queries. Air India is fully cooperating with the authorities looking into this event, according to the airline.
The aircraft was piloted by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and First Officer Clive Kundar. Captain Sumeet Sabharwal is an LTC with 8,200 hours of experience. The official confirmed that the copilot had 1,100 hours of flying experience.
According to ATC, the plane took off from Ahmedabad at 1339 IST (0809 UTC) on runway 23. It made a Mayday plea to ATC, but then failed to react to further calls from ATC. Aircraft immediately after taking from Runway 23 fell to the ground outside the airport perimeter. The official stated that thick black smoke was rising from the accident scene.
Meanwhile, the Gujarat government has dispatched three NDRF teams, each comprising 90 members, from Gandhinagar to the accident site to assist rescue efforts.
The Ahmedabad City Police has established an emergency helpline number for assistance and information in connection with the plane accident. The emergency number for police services and essential information regarding the Ahmedabad plane crash is 07925620359, according to a post on X by the Ahmedabad Police.
