Canadian Among Passengers in Deadly Air India Crash

A Canadian is among the passengers on an Air India flight that crashed shortly after takeoff in India on Thursday and India’s federal health minister says that “many people” have been killed.

Air India Flight 171 was operated on a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft and was headed to London’s Gatwick Airport with 242 passengers and crew onboard when police said it crashed in a civilian area near the airport. According to Reuters, a senior police officer told reporters in the western city of Ahmedabad the building on which it has crashed is a doctors’ hostel. 30-35 bodies have been recovered at the crash site.

“At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates,” Air India said on X. “The injured are being taken to the nearest hospitals.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also released a statement on X; “The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us. It is heartbreaking beyond words. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it. Have been in touch with Ministers and authorities who are working to assist those affected.”

Local media is reporting the crash happened as the plane was taking off from Ahmedabad airport, located is about 600 miles south west of India’s capital New Delhi. The reports show a number of ambulances and stretchers helping people as a massive plume of black smoke filled the sky near the airport.

Pilots gave a “Mayday” call, signalling an emergency, but controllers then had no response from the aircraft.

The 787 is a new model with a generally strong safety record and no previous fatal accidents. USA Today is reporting the flight was helmed by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who reportedly had 8,200 hours of flying experience. The co-pilot, First Officer Clive Kundar, had 1,100 hours logged flying time.

On their website, Air India says in addition to their dedicated passenger hotline at 1800 5691 444, Air India has introduced an additional contact number — +91 80627 79200 — for callers from outside India.
Further updates will be shared on the website and on their X handle @airindia.