An estimated 243 passengers onboard Air India passenger plane are feared dead as the large bodied plane crashed today, June 12, in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad.
The Boeing 787-8 crashed not long after it departed for London’s Gatwick airport, Indian media reported.
The airline confirmed, in a social media post, that the London-bound flight had been involved in “an incident,” saying: “Flight AI171, operating Ahmedabad-London Gatwick, was involved in an incident today.
“At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates.”
There was no immediate confirmation from Indian officials of suspected casualties, but the former Gujarat chief minister was learnt to be among those onboard.
The Air India flight 171, was believed to have reached an altitude of 625 feet before its signal was lost.
Live flight tracking website Flight Radar said it had received a final signal from Flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft capable of carrying more than 250 people, just seconds after it took off.
The flight path showed it travelling southwest from the airport before the path stops.
Indian TV channels showed thick smoke rising from the apparent crash site, with some images showing significant damage to buildings and multiple ambulances rushing to the scene.
