Air India says 241 on board plane killed in crash with one British survivor

More from the Air India statement, which confirms that the sole survivor is a British national.

“Our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of all those affected, their families and loved ones,” the company says.

It adds that it’s “giving its full-co-operation to the authorities investigating this incident”.

Air India has just issued a statement confirming that 241 people on board the plane have been killed.

The airline adds that the “sole survivor” is being treated in hospital.

DNA testing of the victims of the plane crash is currently underway, a press release from Indian Home Affair Minister Amit Shah says.

Shah, who has now visited the crash site after earlier speaking to survivors in hospital, says that only once DNA testing is complete will an official death toll be released.

“On behalf of the government of India, the government of Gujarat, and the prime minister, I express deep condolences to all those who lost their lives,” the statement reads.

The rescue operation at the crash site in Ahmedabad has been completed, India’s civil aviation ministry says.

Warning: This post contains distressing details.

BBC correspondent Roxy Gagdekar has been speaking to people at the scene of the crash in Ahmedabad.

“We heard a loud noise. It sounded like a bomb blast,” one man says.

“There was smoke and fire. I said, ‘let’s go and see’. Someone said that the plane had fallen,” he says, adding: “As soon as I got there, I saw that the plane was on fire. There were three people lying nearby.”

Another man, a taxi driver who was working nearby, says: “When I saw the smoke, I ran there. I couldn’t go near the plane, there were dead bodies outside.”

“The plane’s wing had come out on the main road. There was smoke everywhere,” he says.

Sima Kotecha
Senior UK correspondent

At a Hindu temple in Harrow,
Middlesex, 60 or so worshippers have congregated to pray for those killed
and hurt in the crash.

The Metropolitan Police also has a presence here, with
officers joining in with the musical prayers.

The priest told the congregation
it was a “dark day” as more news came in of the death toll.

He emphasised
this was not about one community but for all those who’ve been affected by what
he called “a dreadful tragedy”.

The congregation chanted continuously for at
least 20 minutes with some members closing their eyes in prayer.

The mood is solemn. But an elderly Indian woman told me prayer is providing much-needed
comfort at this time.

The answer to what went wrong for Air India Flight 171 may lie in the plane’s black boxes – small but sturdy electronic data recorders.

Planes generally carry one to records sound from the cockpit so that investigators can hear what the pilots are saying and listen out for any unusual sounds that may give them a lead. A second also records flight data, like altitude and speed.

Typically, black boxes are kept in the tail of the plane, thought to be the section that is typically least damaged in the event of a crash.

We’re yet to hear whether the black boxes for Flight 171 have been recovered, but if they are, don’t expect immediate answers – it can sometimes take days or weeks to analyse the data.

Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg has now issued a statement about the crash, saying his thoughts are with the victims.

“Our deepest condolences go out to the loved ones of the passengers and crew on board Air India Flight 171, as well as everyone affected in Ahmedabad,” he says.

Ortberg says he spoke with Air India Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran “to offer our full support”, and reiterates that Boeing will support an investigation led by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.

Here’s a quick recap of what we know at this point about the Air India plane crash at Ahmedabad’s airport:

• The London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with 242 people on board crashes into a residential area just moments after take-off at about 13:38 local time (09:08 BST) on Thursday
• Dramatic footage later emerges showing the aircraft taking off before slowly coming down in a built-up area. Plumes of black smoke are then seen rising high into the sky after an explosion upon impact
• Local police say 204 bodies have since been recovered from the crash site – it’s not known how many of those victims were on the plane, or were on the ground when the plane crashed
• Ahmedabad’s police chief tells Indian media there is one survivor from the plane – he is reported to be a British national named Vishwashkumar Ramesh
• There were 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian on the flight
• At least 50 injured medical students are being treated in hospital after the plane crashed into a doctors’ hostel in the western Indian city
• A search operation is continuing overnight at the massive crash site
• Teams of US and UK specialists are heading to India to assist with the investigation

Stay with us, as we’ll continue bringing you all the latest developments as well as photos and videos – as soon as we get them.

Yogita Limaye
South Asia and Afghanistan Correspondent, reporting from Ahmedabad

What strikes you as soon as you enter the area where the crash happened is this kind of burning smell in the air, which grows stronger and stronger.

Where we are, there are still very acrid fumes. In front of me I can see the fire brigade, which is pointing a giant hose towards one of the buildings to put out the fire that is still burning, blazing inside.

There’s a charred tree but I can see parts of it right at the top still smoking. I can see sparks from there and right next to me, there’s also a fallen tree, which is also smoking.

Ever since I’ve walked in, I’ve just seen hundreds of rescue workers, scores and scores of police officers everywhere, ambulances.

This is a massive plane that crashed – a Dreamliner aircraft – but you’ve got to be on the ground to just see the scale of devastation.

The scale of the tragedy is just truly, truly, much more massive than perhaps what I had imagined when I got here.

All you can see is charred bits and pieces, metal bits, bits of concrete blocks, bricks, strewn all about.

I can see what appear to be parts of charred bits of the body of a plane, but I don’t think anybody can be sure of what that was. This really just feels like an apocalyptic scene.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a scene of such devastation from one incident which looks like this before.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the news from India following today’s crash of a plane bound for London Gatwick in Ahmedabad is “absolutely devastating” and he “speaks for the entire country in saying our thoughts are with everyone involved”.

Speaking to broadcasters, he says a UK team had been dispatched to Gujarat to join the investigation, and urges families and friends of anyone affected to contact the Foreign Office.

“Our hearts and our thoughts are absolutely with the friends and families of everyone affected who’ll be absolutely devastated by this awful news”, he says.

Indian Home Affairs Minister Amit Shah has met people injured in the crash – including the man who seems to be the only survivor from the plane itself, British man Vishwashkumar Ramesh.

Footage from news agencies showed Shah meeting Ramesh in his hospital bed. Ramesh earlier spoke to reporters from hospital, while the BBC interviewed one of his relatives in Leicester.

More now about the British national who is reported to have survived the plane crash.

Vishwashkumar Ramesh has “no idea” how he escaped the plane, his relatives say.

Speaking outside his family home in Leicester, Vishwashkumar’s brother Nayankumar, 27, says: “We were just shocked as soon as we heard it”.

He says that Vishwashkumar told him after the crash: “I have no idea how I exited the plane.”

A relative called Jay says Vishwashkumar has spoken to his father asking about his brother Ajay, who is believed to have also been on the plane.

Vishwashkumar “got some injuries on his face. He was pretty much covered in blood – that’s what his dad said”, Jay adds.

We’re seeing images showing people taking part in prayer ceremonies in the cities of Patna and Siliguri.

They are lighting candles for the victims of today’s crash in Ahmedabad.

We can now bring you footage of British man, Vishwashkumar Ramesh, seemingly walking away from the crash site in Ahmedabad.

As a reminder, Ramesh earlier spoke to reporters from his hospital bed, and showed them his boarding pass – while the BBC spoke to a relative of his in Leicester.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Speaking at the White House, US President Trump said he has offered “anything we can do” to Indian authorities after the “horrific crash”.

“Nobody had any idea what happened,” he said. “It looks like it was flying just fine.”

President Trump also said he believed it was “one of the most worst crashes in aviation history”.

Trump was speaking at an event in the East Room of the White House to bar California from implementing the state’s electric vehicle mandate.

Alex Boyd
Reporting from Gatwick Airport

It’s a strange atmosphere at Gatwick this afternoon.

Throughout the day I’ve seen hundreds of groups, couples and
families travel through the airport as usual.

Many are unaware of what’s happened until they see the crowd of
world media gathered outside the departures area.

As we head towards when the Ahmedabad flight was due to land,
the Air India check in desks in the South Terminal remain empty aside from some
airport staff.

Gatwick says it’s set up a reception centre for the families of
those affected.

And another of the airline’s flights – scheduled to leave for
Goa later tonight – has been cancelled.

As we’ve been reporting, the airline began running routes from
the West Sussex airport in March 2023. There are currently 12 departures per
week, five of which go to Ahmedabad.

We’re starting to get names of the British passengers who were on board the Air India flight.

The BBC can confirm Akeel Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa Vorajee and their daughter, who lived in Gloucester, were on board the flight.

A statement from the Gloucester Muslim Society, which names the three victims, says: “Today,
we are profoundly heartbroken by the devastating loss of life in the
catastrophic crash of Flight AI171, traveling from Ahmedabad to London.”

Navtej Johal and Katie Thompson
Reporting from Leicester

Earlier, we brought you reports of a British survivor of the plane crash.

We’ve now spoken to Vishwashkumar Ramesh’s relative, Ajay Valgi, in Leicester.

He says Vishwash called his family earlier to say he’s “fine”.

Vishwash said he doesn’t know the whereabouts of his brother, Ajay, who was also on board the plane.

Their relatives have gathered at the family home in Leicester in support and mourning. They’re awaiting more information.

Vishwash has a wife and child. The BBC understands that he was born in India, but has lived in the UK for many years.

We’re seeing some images from the scene of the crash. Part of the plane can be seen protruding out of the building and a large piece of debris smouldering on the roof.

BBC’s Visual Journalism team has taken a look at what parts of the plane are visible in published images.