NEW DELHI: An Air India flight crashed on Thursday shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad. The London-bound flight had over 242 passengers on board.“Air India B787 Aircraft VT-ANB, while operating flight AI-171 from (Ahmedabad to Gatwick) has crashed immediately after takeoff from Ahmedabad. There were 242 people on board the aircraft, consisting of 2 pilots and 10 cabin crew. The aircraft was under the command of Capt Sumeet Sabharwal with First Officer Clive Kundar,” Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) informed.
Here’s what we know so far:
- The exact reason behind the
crash is unknown. - Union home minister Amit Shah spoke to the Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel and took stock of the situation. He also assured the central government’s assistance into the accident.
- Air India reacted to the incident and said that the airlines was trying to “ascertaining the details”. “Flight AI171, operating Ahmedabad-London Gatwick, was involved in an incident today, 12 June 2025. At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates at the earliest on http://airindia.com and on our X handle,” it said in a post on X.
- Three National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, comprising 90 personnel, have been moved from Gandhinagar to the
plane crash site. A total of three more teams are being moved from Vadodara, NDRF informed. - Lok Sabha MP Yusuf Pathan expressed shock over the incident saying, “Very shocked to hear about the Air India Ahmedabad-London flight incident near Ahmedabad airport. Praying for the safety of all passengers and crew.”
