More than 200 killed as Air India plane crashes in Ahmedabad

More than 200 people were killed when an Air India plane bound for London with 242 people on board crashed minutes after taking off from the western city of Ahmedabad on Thursday.

The plane came down in a residential area, crashing on to a medical college hostel outside the airport during lunch hour. It was headed for Gatwick Airport, south of the British capital.

At least one person is known to have survived, police said, and the man told Indian media how he had heard a loud noise shortly after take-off.

City police chief G.S. Malik told Reuters that 204 bodies had been recovered from the crash site. Vidhi Chaudhary, another senior police officer, said police found one survivor who was in seat 11A, adding that there could be more survivors in hospital.

"Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed," 40-year-old Ramesh Viswashkumar told the Hindustan Times, which showed a boarding pass for seat 11A in that name online.

"It all happened so quickly," he told the paper from his hospital bed.

"When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me," he said. "Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital."

He said that his brother Ajay was seated in a different row on the plane. "He was travelling with me and I can’t find him anymore. Please help me find him,” he said.

Police chief Malik said the bodies recovered could include both passengers and people killed on the ground. Federal minister C.R. Patil said the dead included Vijay Rupani, the former chief minister of Gujarat state, of which Ahmedabad is the main city.

"Chances are there could be some more survivors among those who are in hospital," police officer Chaudhary told Reuters. "There are also chances that the death toll will go up. More than 50 injured are in hospitals at present."

Relatives had been asked to give DNA samples to identify the dead, state health secretary Dhananjay Dwivedi told reporters.

"Ahmedabad Civil Hospital students' hostel, staff quarters and other residential areas are located in the area where the plane crashed," Dwivedi said. "The residents of that area were also injured."

India's CNN News-18 TV channels said the plane crashed on top of the dining area of state-run B.J. Medical College hostel, killing many medical students as well.

Of the passengers, 169 were Indian nationals, 53 were Britons, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian, Air India said.

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Aviation tracking site Flightradar24 said the plane was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service.

It was the first crash for the Dreamliner, which began flying commercially in 2011, according to the Aviation Safety Network database. The plane that crashed on Thursday flew for the first time in 2013 and was delivered to Air India in January 2014, Flightradar24 said.

The crash occurred just after the plane took off, television channels reported. One channel showed the plane taking off over a residential area and then disappearing from the screen before a huge jet of fire can be seen rising into the sky from beyond the houses.

Visuals also showed debris on fire, with thick black smoke rising up into the sky near the airport.

According to air traffic control at Ahmedabad Airport, the aircraft departed at 1:39 pm (0809 GMT) from runway 23. It gave a "Mayday" call, signalling an emergency, but thereafter there was no response from the aircraft.

Flightradar24 also said that it received the last signal from the aircraft seconds after it took off.

Boeing said it was aware of initial reports and was working to gather more information. Boeing shares fell 6.8 per cent to $199.13 in pre-market trade.

Britain was working with Indian authorities to urgently establish the facts around the crash and to provide support to those involved, the country's foreign office said in a statement posted on its website.

"The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X. "It is heartbreaking beyond words."

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said images emerging of the crash were "devastating", and that he was being kept informed as the situation developed. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said King Charles was also being kept updated.

MODI'S HOME STATE

Britain is working with Indian authorities to urgently establish the facts around the crash and to provide support to those involved, the country's foreign office said in a statement posted on its website.

The Indian aviation minister's office said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed it to ensure all support was extended to the rescue efforts immediately.

All relevant agencies were on high alert and coordinated efforts were underway, the aviation minister's office added.

Ahmedabad is the main city in Modi's home state of Gujarat.

The formerly state-owned Air India was taken over by Indian conglomerate Tata Group in 2022, and merged with Vistara - a joint venture between the group and Singapore Airlines – in 2024.

Tata said an emergency centre had been activated and a support team set up for families seeking information.