A London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 passengers and crew crashed in the Meghaninagar area near Ahmedabad Airport on Thursday afternoon.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the flight was operated by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, assisted by First Officer Clive Kundar. Captain Sabharwal, a highly experienced Line Training Captain (LTC), had logged 8,200 flight hours, while First Officer Kundar had 1,100 hours of flying experience.
Air Traffic Control (ATC) records indicate the aircraft took off from Ahmedabad's Runway 23 at 13:39 local time. Shortly after departure, the crew issued a MAYDAY distress call but then ceased all communication. The plane crashed beyond the airport perimeter moments later. The DGCA, citing ANI reports, confirmed dense black smoke was visible at the crash site immediately after impact.
Following the incident, flight operations at Ahmedabad Airport have been temporarily suspended until further notice.
Air India confirmed in a social media statement that the Boeing 787-8 aircraft was carrying 242 passengers and crew members. The nationalities included 169 Indian citizens, 53 British nationals, 1 Canadian national, and 1 Portuguese nationals.
Pained beyond words: HM Shah
In an X post, Home Minister Amit Shah responded to the tragic incident. "Pained beyond words by the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad. Disaster response forces have been quickly rushed to the crash site. Spoke with the Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Bhupendra Patel, Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi, and Commissioner of Police Ahmedabad to assess the situation," he said.
