NU
Thu, 12 June 2025
London - An Air India plane with 242 people on board has crashed shortly after taking off from an airport in India’s western city of Ahmedabad.
The number of casualties was not immediately clear. The plane was bound for London’s Gatwick Airport, where it was due to land at 6.25 p.m. local time (1.25 p.m. ET).
In a statement, Air India confirmed that of 242 passengers and crew members, 169 were Indian nationals and 53 were British nationals. There were also seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian national on board, the airline said.
Rescue services arrived as soon as the jetliner crashed and injured have been rushed to nearby hospitals, reports said.
All flights out of Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport have been suspended until further notice following the incident, according to a spokesperson for the airport.
“Passengers are advised to check with their respective airlines for the latest updates before proceeding to the airport. We request your cooperation and patience as authorities manage this evolving situation,” the spokesperson said.
India’s minister of civil aviation, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, said he was “shocked and devastated” to learn of the plane crash.
“Rescue teams have been mobilised, and all efforts are being made to ensure medical aid and relief support are being rushed to the site,” the minister wrote on a statement on X.
Natarajan Chandrasekaran, the chairman of Air India, said that Air India Flight AI171 had been involved in a “tragic accident.”
He added, “We are doing everything in our power to assist the emergency response teams at the site and to provide all necessary support and care to those impacted.”
This is the first-ever crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft globally. This particular aircraft was delivered to Air India in January 2014. As per flight tracking data, the signal from the aircraft was lost at an altitude of just 625 feet, moments after takeoff. It then descended with a vertical speed of 475 feet per minute, Indian Express newspaper reported.
Details are still being awaited.
