An Air India passenger plane bound for London’s Gatwick tragically crashed, claiming the lives of hundreds.
The airline said it crashed on Thursday in India’s northwestern city of Ahmedabad.
Visuals on local television channels showed smoke billowing from the crash site in what appeared to be a populated area near the airport in Ahmedabad.
Air India, the country’s flagship carrier, said in a post on X that Flight 171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick had been “involved in an incident” and that it was “ascertaining the details and will share further updates at the earliest.”
The city’s police commissioner told the Associated Press that there appeared to be no survivors.
The 242 people on board, including 12 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crew, 169 from India, 53 from Britain, seven from Portugal, and one from Canada, left many devastated families.
King Charles “Shocked” By Air India Plane Crash
An Air India plane carrying 242 people crashed today near a major international airport in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad.
Flight AI 171 was a widebody twin-engine Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. According to the Aviation Safety Network database, this is the first crash of a Boeing 787 aircraft.
All 242 people aboard would tragically lose their lives.
The United Kingdom’s King Charles said he and Queen Camilla are “desperately shocked” by the “terrible events” in Ahmedabad, per CNN.
“Our special prayers and deepest possible sympathy are with the families and friends of all those affected by this appallingly tragic incident across so many nations, as they await news of their loved ones,” the King said in a message posted to the Royal Family’s official X account.
He also paid tribute to the “heroic efforts” of the emergency services and all those “providing help and support at this most heartbreaking and traumatic time.”
