A British citizen is so far the lone survivor from the fatal Air India plane that crashed on Thursday morning killing more than 200 people.
Ahmedabad Police Commissioner GS Malik tells news agency ANI there is one survivor, who is in seat 11A on the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner flight.
Speaking to ANI, Malik says the survivor “has been in the hospital and is under treatment”.
The flight manifest shared earlier by authorities lists the passenger in seat 11A as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a British national.
Indian media say they’ve spoken to Vishwash in hospital. He shared his boarding pass which showed his name and and seat number.
They reported him saying: “Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed. It all happened so quickly.”
Here’s what we know so far:
The plane – a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 people – crashed in a residential area near the airport, hitting a doctors’ hostel
There were 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian on the flight, according to Air India
Footage shows the moment the plane crashed, and the explosion as it hit the ground
Some 204 bodies have been recovered from the crash site, the Ahmedabad police chief says, and at least 50 medical students are in hospital
Boeing says its thoughts are with all those affected, and it is in contact with Air India regarding the incident
Tributes have come from world leaders, including King Charles who says he is “desperately shocked” by the crash
A difficult day for all of us – Air India chief executivepublished at 15:10
The chief executive of Air India, Campbell Wilson, expresses “deep sorrow” following the London-bound plane crash.
In a video statement posted on X, he says: “I would like to express our deep sorrow about this event.
This is a difficult day for all of us at Air India and our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of our passengers, crew members, their families and loved ones.”
Tata Group to compensate crash victims’
Tata Group, which owns Air India, says it will give 1 crore rupees – the equivalent of around £86,000 – to the families of each person who was killed in the crash.
It will also cover the medical expenses of those injured and provide support for rebuilding the medical hostel that was hit.
“No words can adequately express the grief we feel at this moment,” it says in a statement posted on X, external.
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