Rescuers have recovered another body from the tail section of Air India Flight AI-171, which crashed just 33 seconds after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on Thursday afternoon, bringing the death toll to at least 265.
The body was discovered lodged in the tail of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, which had crashed into the rooftop of a doctors’ hostel near a medical college in the Meghani Nagar area. The plane, en route to London, had 242 people on board, including 169 Indian nationals, 53 British citizens, 7 Portuguese, 1 Canadian, and 12 crew members.
Authorities confirmed the crash resulted in dozens of deaths on the ground as well, after the aircraft struck a densely populated residential area, causing widespread destruction.
So far, only one person has survived the crash — British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who was seated in 11A.
Security and Rescue Ops Intensify
A team from the National Security Guard (NSG) has been deployed to assist in rescue and relief efforts. NSG commandos were seen atop the hostel building where the aircraft’s tail remains embedded. However, officials clarified that NSG holds no investigative authority in the matter and is present only in a support role.
A multi-agency investigation is now underway involving:
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Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB)
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Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
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Ahmedabad Crime Branch
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Local Police
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National Investigation Agency (NIA) (visited the site Friday)
DNA Identification Process Fast-Tracked
In response to the scale of the tragedy, authorities have committed to accelerating DNA analysis of recovered human remains, aiming to complete victim identification within three days.
As investigators search for the root cause, the focus remains on retrieving remains, analyzing black box data, and establishing how a modern aircraft crashed in daylight shortly after take-off, despite good weather conditions.
