What began as a routine international flight ended in one of India’s most heartbreaking aviation disasters in decades.
An Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner, en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed just moments after takeoff, claiming at least 279 lives, including people on board and others on the ground.
The only survivor was a British national, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, whose survival is being called miraculous.
Investigators Focus on Flight Recorders
Authorities are now focused on piecing together what exactly went wrong.
The black boxes — the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder — have been recovered and are being analyzed.
These crucial devices store audio from the cockpit and technical flight data like engine settings and control inputs, offering a potential roadmap to what led to the crash.
Aviation expert and former pilot Amit Singh emphasized that the combination of these data points is essential.
“The black boxes tell the whole story,” he said, noting that the recordings can confirm technical failures and shed light on conversations between pilots and air traffic control during those critical final seconds.
Mayday Call and Early Theories
The pilots, identified as Sumeet Sabharwal and Clive Kunder, reportedly made a mayday call just before the aircraft went down.
Investigators are reviewing this distress signal and collecting CCTV footage and eyewitness statements from the surrounding area.
Early speculations point to the possibility of a sudden power loss shortly after takeoff — a phase known for being the most demanding and unforgiving in flight operations.
Some experts, including commercial pilot Steve Schreiber, believe a catastrophic event like a bird strike or wind shear might have caused both engines to fail.
Supporting this theory is video footage showing the deployment of the aircraft’s Ram Air Turbine (RAT), a device that automatically activates during a serious electrical, hydraulic, or dual engine failure.
Crash Site Raises More Questions
The crash occurred just seconds after liftoff from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Airport.
According to Flightradar24, the plane reached an altitude of only 625 feet before it started to plummet.
It ultimately struck a residential hostel connected to BJ Medical College, a building full of trainee doctors.
Many were killed instantly as the aircraft slammed into the structure.
This harrowing event has raised alarms about how such a tragedy could unfold in a modern, supposedly well-maintained aircraft like the Dreamliner.
Aircraft History Under Scrutiny
The 12-year-old Boeing 787 involved in the crash had not been flagged for major concerns before this incident.
However, the wider Dreamliner fleet has not been immune to safety issues in recent years.
There are about 1,200 Dreamliners in operation globally, and experts say this is the first fatal crash of its kind in the model’s 16-year history.
India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation has since launched urgent inspections of all 33 Dreamliners in Air India’s fleet to ensure none are facing similar mechanical vulnerabilities.
Comprehensive Investigation Underway
India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is leading the probe, with support from UK and US authorities, as well as Boeing’s own technical team.
They’re digging deep — examining the aircraft’s total weight at departure, the performance of its engines, and whether the pilots had been sufficiently trained for such emergencies.
Amit Singh pointed out that the investigation also includes reviewing pilot training records and any prior maintenance issues related to the plane.
Former accident bureau chief Aurobindo Handa stated that the investigation will follow globally accepted standards set by the United Nations’ “DOC 9756” — a manual that guides international aviation investigations.
Due to the extreme damage to the aircraft, Handa believes it could take considerable time before the full picture emerges.
Condition of the Black Boxes a Key Concern
With the plane heavily charred upon impact, investigators are also worried about whether the black boxes withstood the intense heat.
These devices are built to survive extreme conditions, but the temperature from this crash may have exceeded typical thresholds.
Even so, authorities remain hopeful. Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said decoding the flight data recorder should offer meaningful insights into what went wrong during the short flight.
The goal is not only to understand this disaster but also to prevent future ones.
Global Support and Accountability Measures
This tragedy has triggered a broad international response.
Experts from Boeing, American and British aviation regulators, and crash analysts are working hand in hand with Indian authorities.
The Indian government has also set up a high-level committee to draft new aviation safety guidelines and propose preventive measures for similar emergencies.
This special task force is expected to submit an initial report within three months.
A Flight That Carried the World
Flight AI171 wasn’t just filled with passengers — it was filled with families, dreams, and connections across borders.
Among the 241 onboard were 53 British nationals, 159 Indian citizens, seven Portuguese travelers, and one Canadian.
The loss has been felt deeply in multiple countries.
What Comes Next?
As search crews continue to sift through the debris and authorities await the final results from black box analysis, many are left asking how a modern aircraft could fall from the sky within minutes of takeoff.
Until the investigation wraps, speculation will continue — but the priority now is transparency, accountability, and ensuring this tragedy never repeats itself.