'Mystery object seen flying off Air India plane' seconds before tragic crash
Footage of the Air India plane crash shows a dark object seemingly getting detached from the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner and flying into the air before the plane explodes into flames
A video that emerged after Thursday's tragic plane crash in India appears to show an object flying from the aircraft just moments before it went down, killing 241 people on board.
Footage filmed in Ahmedabad, in the state of Gujarat, shows a dark object seemingly becoming detached from the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner before the plane crashes and explodes into flames. While it's not clear exactly what the object was, there has been speculation that it could be one of the plane's emergency doors - possibly the one next to which the only survivor of the crash, British man Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, was sitting.
The cause of the crash hasn't been established yet and investigators are analysing the footage while looking for the debris at the site where the plane came down. The investigation is also understood to be focusing on the engine, flaps and landing gear.
The plane's digital flight data recorder, or black box, was recovered from a rooftop near the crash site and India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau said it had begun its work with "full force". The black box recovery marks an important step forward in the investigation, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said in a social media post.
The device will reveal information about the engine and control settings, in addition to what the voice recorder will show about the cockpit conversations, Paul Fromme, a mechanical engineer with the UK-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers said in a statement. "This should show quickly if there was a loss of engine power or lift after take-off and allow a preliminary determination of the likely cause for the crash," said Fromme, who heads the professional association's Aerospace Division.
Separately, the country's civil aviation regulator ordered Air India to conduct additional inspections of its Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliners equipped with General Electric's GEnx engines. That includes checks of the fuel parameters, cabin air compressor, engine control system, hydraulic system and take-off parameters, the order said.
Investigators on Friday continued searching the site of the crash - one of India's worst aviation disasters - and Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the lone surviving passenger in hospital. Sharing details of his experience before the crash, Vishwash, who was in seat 11A, explained the lights on the plane "started flickering" just seconds after the plane took off - and shortly after, it crashed.
The British national told the Hindustan Times: "When I saw the exit, I thought I could come out. I tried, and I did. Maybe the people who were on the other side of the plane weren't able to." He added: "I don't know how I survived. I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me … I walked out of the rubble."
After Vishwash was confirmed to be the only survivor, his family also said he had "no idea" how he escaped alive. While they were glad that he did, they were left heartbroken as his brother Ajay, who was also on the flight, didn't survive.
Another brother of the pair, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, 27, spoke from outside the family home in Leicester and said: "We were just shocked as soon as we heard it. I last spoke to him yesterday morning. We're devastated, just devastated. He said I have no idea how I exited the plane."
A relative called Jay added that Vishwash spoke to his dad following the crash. He said: "He's got some injuries on his face. He was painted in blood. He was pretty much covered in blood, that's what his dad said." He added: "He's doing well I think. It's a big shock. I don't have many words to describe the incident."
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