Boeing 787-8, Which Crashed In Ahmedabad, Had Immaculate Safety Record
Ahmedabad:
The Air India Ahmedabad-London flight crashed this afternoon, marking the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner's first fatal crash since the aircraft's debut in 2011.
With 242 people on board, Air India flight AI171 took off from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhai Patel Airport around 2 pm and crashed minutes later into a residential area. Moments before the crash, the pilots issued a "Mayday" distress, call which received no response from the Air Traffic Controller. Flames erupted and thick smoke billowed from the site, rising high enough to be visible from miles across the city.
Before Thursday's crash, the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft had an immaculate record with 1,000 planes delivered in around the 14 years since it was launched. Described on the company website as the "best-selling passenger wide-body of all time", the aircraft have carried more than one billion passengers. It is faster than any other widebody jet in aviation history and has a structure that reduces fuel consumption by up to 25 per cent.
The long-haul aircraft has a range of 13,530 kilometres and is widely used by airlines for intercontinental flights. It has a capacity of 248 passengers.
There are 27 legacy B787-8s with Air India.
In the wide-body category, Air India now has 6 A350s, 19 B777-300 ERs, 5 B777-200 LRs, 7 B787-9s and 27 B787-8s. Among the narrow-body fleet are 6 A319s, 94 A320 neos, 4 A320 ceos, 13 A321 ceos and 10 A321 neos.
On board the flight that crashed this afternoon, there were 169 Indians, 53 British, one Canadian and seven Portuguese nationals onboard. Further, two pilots and 10 crew members were present on the flight that was to fly to London's Gatwick airport.
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Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
On board AI 171: Proud parents headed to the UK to attend convocations
Thrilled that they would be part of her convocation ceremony on June 23, Dhwani Patel couldn't wait to see her parents — and the graduation dress they had picked out for her — in London. Rajni Patel (51) and his wife, Divyaben (47), from Gujarat's Vasad town, had also packed local snacks, new shoes and a watch to surprise the 21-year-old. Travelling with them was Dhwani's aunt, Hemangi Patel (57). 'They had scheduled a flight for June 20 but advanced it to June 16, and finally to June 12, as they wanted to spend more time with me since I was to sit for placements after my convocation. This was the first time someone from our family was attending a convocation abroad. I told them to stay with me for some days as the weather is usually good in London,' Dhwani told The Indian Express. The family found itself on the Air India flight that crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing all but one on board. A student of business management from Middlesex University in London, Dhwani rushed back home but could only reach on June 14. 'Due to the Israel-Iran conflict, my flight was redirected to Austria, then Milan and then back to the UK. I took a new flight and reached on June 14,' she said. 'They had packed everything Dhwani likes… They hoped to stay with her for some days before she started working,' said her 31-year-old cousin Parth Patel, whose mother Hemangi died in the crash. On board the flight were several such proud parents who were heading to the UK to attend their children's convocation. Two others who lost parents to the Dreamliner crash are Ahmedabad's Pratham Nanda (22), who was graduating from Nottingham Trent University, and Gracy Sagparia from Rajkot, who was graduating from the University for the Creative Arts, Epsom. Like Dhwani's parents, they too had rescheduled their travel plans. Pratham is grieving the loss not just of his parents but of his younger brother, Prayash (18), too. Apart from attending Pratham's convocation, the parents – founder of Cargo Motors Group Pramukh Pravesh Nanda and his wife Neha – thought they would also shortlist universities for Prayash. An undergraduate student of business management and entrepreneurship, Pratham was waiting for his family to attend his convocation on June 16. 'Prayash, who had just completed his Class XII, also wanted to study abroad, so the family thought it would be a good opportunity to look for universities. They were to visit two-three universities before finalising one,' Pramukh's younger brother Pranav told The Indian Express. Pramukh was a key figure in Gujarat's automobile and transport sectors and was well-known in the state's business circles. The bodies were cremated on June 17 after the mortal remains were handed over following DNA sample reports. Pratham reached Mumbai on June 13 morning, from where he travelled by road to Ahmedabad. According to Pranav, the family was to leave on June 9 so they could get more time before the convocation. 'But since our father was not well and had to be hospitalised, they delayed the tickets to June 12. The same day (of the crash), my father was discharged from the hospital in Ahmedabad,' Pranav said. Pratham says he plans to join and lead his family's car dealership business, which was founded in 1959 and has operations in Delhi, Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan. Gracy, who had wrapped up a four-year course in fashion design, recalled, 'My father was not too happy to travel alone as my mother's visa got cancelled just three days before June 12. I pushed him to continue his trip as he would not be able to witness this occasion again. He was coming to London just for me.' Narsinhbhai Sagpariya, 63, a resident of Kalavad Road in Rajkot and a well-known architect, had booked the tickets for June 12 after several changes in the plan. 'I wanted my parents to plan the trip days ahead of the convocation since I wanted them to explore London and other places. This would have been their first foreign trip,' she said.
India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
Air India Express flight to Patna diverted to Varanasi due to bad weather
New Delhi [India], June 22 (ANI): An Air India Express flight from Delhi to Patna was diverted to Varanasi on Saturday due to adverse weather conditions. An airline spokesperson said that Air India Express flight IX1014 from Delhi (DEL) to Patna (PAT) on 21 June 2025 was diverted to Varanasi (VNS). 'Due to adverse weather conditions, one of our flights to Patna was diverted briefly to Varanasi. When the weather improved, the flight resumed and landed in Patna. We regret the delay caused by circumstances beyond our control,' the spokesperson said. Earlier in the week, on Monday, another Air India Express flight from Delhi to Ranchi had to return to the national capital shortly after takeoff due to a suspected technical issue. The airline said the Boeing 737 Max 8 plane was scheduled to land at Ranchi's Birsa Munda Airport at 6:20 PM. After the inspection and clearance, the aircraft continued its normal operations. 'One of our flights returned to Delhi after take-off due to a suspected technical issue. Post inspections and clearance, the aircraft continued scheduled operations. We regret the inconvenience,' the airline spokesperson said. Earlier on Friday, Air India cancelled several international and domestic flights due to increased aircraft checks, bad weather, and airspace restrictions. Affected flights include services between Dubai, Chennai, Delhi, Melbourne, Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and Mumbai. According to an Air India's statement, 'Air India's international flights AI906 from Dubai to Chennai; AI308 from Delhi to Melbourne; AI309 from Melbourne to Delhi; AI2204 from Dubai to Hyderabad and domestic flights AI874 from Pune to Delhi; AI456 from Ahmedabad to Delhi; AI-2872 from Hyderabad to Mumbai and AI571 from Chennai to Mumbai have been cancelled due to enhanced maintenance and operational reasons.' The airline has offered full refunds or free rescheduling and is helping passengers with alternate travel plans. 'We regret the inconvenience caused to passengers. Our colleagues on ground are making alternative arrangements for them to fly to their respective destinations at the earliest. Full refunds on cancellation or complimentary rescheduling has been offered to passengers,' it said. (ANI)
Indian Express
7 hours ago
- Indian Express
Chennai-bound Indigo flight lands in Bengaluru after pilot announces ‘fuel mayday'
Indigo flight 6E-6764 operating from Guwahati to Chennai on Thursday made an emergency landing at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru after the pilot announced a 'fuel mayday'. The aircraft (Airbus A321) departed Guwahati at 4.40 pm and attempted to land in Chennai around 7.45 pm but had to abort due to insufficient fuel, prompting the pilot to issue a 'fuel mayday' alert. It landed in Bengaluru at 8.15 pm, with all 168 passengers evacuated safely. The incident triggered fresh aviation safety concerns, following closely on the heels of the UK-bound Air India flight crash near Ahmedabad airport last week. Although Indigo has not issued any official statement, sources in the airline company told The Indian Express that the flight encountered a fuel emergency after being denied landing at Chennai airport due to air traffic congestion. 'Since the flight did not receive clearance to land at Chennai due to congestion and was flying at low fuel, the pilot announced a fuel mayday as per the protocol, and the aircraft was diverted to Bengaluru. The Bengaluru ATC (Air Traffic Control) gave a priority landing, and the flight landed safely at 8.15 pm. Contrary to some reports, the pilot did not announce a mayday, instead a fuel mayday, which is different,' said a source from the airline company. 'Post landing, passengers were deboarded without reported injuries and were given refreshments at the airport, as per protocol,' the source added. The aircraft was refuelled and took off with a new crew and 168 passengers to Chennai at around 10.30 pm. 'Since the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) of the crew lapsed, a new crew took over the flight as per protocol and took off to Chennai at around 10.24 pm,' said the source. The incident comes a day after another Indigo flight, headed to Madurai, flew back to Chennai after a mid-air snag. After flying for about half an hour, the pilot detected the issue and sought permission to fly back to Chennai. The plane carrying about 68 passengers landed safely.
