Air India Crash Death Toll Hits 270
Doctors in India have confirmed that 270 bodies have been recovered from the wreckage of Thursday’s devastating Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad.
The London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plunged into a residential compound shortly after take-off, killing nearly all 242 people on board.
The sole survivor was a 40-year-old British man, who remains hospitalized with critical injuries.
Authorities are also working to determine how many additional lives may have been lost on the ground, as the aircraft slammed into a building that served as housing for medical staff from BJ Medical College and Civil Hospital.
Efforts are ongoing to identify the victims through DNA matching, a process that remains slow due to the severity of the crash.
So far, over 30 victims have been formally identified through samples provided by grieving relatives.
Vigils and memorials have been held in both India and the United Kingdom to honor the victims. In London, about 100 mourners gathered outside the High Commission of India on Sunday, lighting candles and offering prayers.
Many of them expressed anguish and demanded answers about how such a tragedy could occur.
One community leader noted that families had flown to India to identify the remains of their loved ones and were still awaiting forensic confirmations.
The cause of the crash is under investigation by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), with support from American and British aviation experts.
A key breakthrough came on Friday when the aircraft’s black box was recovered, which officials say will play a vital role in uncovering the circumstances that led to the crash.
Initial data shows that less than a minute after take-off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, the plane rapidly lost altitude and crashed into the nearby doctors’ residence.
The building was destroyed, with additional casualties feared among those on the ground.
Dr. Dhaval Gameti, President of the Junior Doctors’ Association at BJ Medical College, confirmed that the hospital had received 270 bodies, of which 241 are presumed to be the flight’s passengers and crew.
Flight tracking website Flightradar24 reported that the aircraft was 11 years old and had completed 25 flights on the Ahmedabad-to-London route in the last two years.
In light of the crash, India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered urgent inspections of all Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft in Air India’s fleet as a precautionary measure.
On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the crash site, spending 20 minutes surveying the damage and later visiting injured survivors at the hospital. He offered his condolences and said, “The entire nation is praying for their recovery.”
Air India’s CEO, Campbell Wilson, also visited the scene and described the experience as “deeply moving,” pledging full cooperation with investigators and support for the victims’ families.
Air India Crash Death Toll Hits 270