Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, the only confirmed survivor of the Air Indian crash involving over 200 passengers, has recounted what happened during the ill-fated flight and how he survived the unfortunate incident.
On Thursday, June 12, 2025, a London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 people crashed in the Indian city of Ahmedabad.
The Gatwick Airport-bound Air India’s flight 171 issued a mayday call and crashed immediately after leaving Ahmedabad, the central city of India’s Gujarat state, around 1:40 pm (0810 GMT).
Meanwhile, Ramesh said the accident happened about 30 seconds into the flight.
According to Hindustan Times, the lone survivor recalled his instant reaction after realising he had survived the crash.
“Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed. It all happened so quickly,” Ramesh narrated.
“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. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital.”
Vishwash, a British national, was returning to the United Kingdom with his brother, Ajay Kumar Ramesh (45), after visiting India for a few days to see his family.
How the Indian plane crash occurred
Several footage posted on social media showed how the aircraft rapidly lost altitude, with its nose up, before hitting a building and exploding into a ball of fire.
The plane crashed into a building occupied by doctors and their families in a crowded residential area of Ahmedabad, a city home to about eight million people.
“We saw people from the building jumping from the second and third floor to save themselves. The plane was in flames,” a resident who declined to be named stated.
Air India, operators of the ill-fated plane, announced that the passengers included 169 Indians, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and a Canadian. Two pilots and 10 cabin crew were also aboard.
