Air India Plane Crash Report: One month after the Air India AI 717 crash on June 12, Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, the sole survivor of the tragic incident, is undergoing psychiatric treatment to cope with the severe mental trauma, his cousin Sunny told. While many consider him incredibly fortunate to have walked away alive, Vishwas continues to struggle with profound grief and survivor’s guilt.
The 40-year-old Indian-origin British citizen lost his brother Ajay in the crash that claimed 241 lives, including 19 people on the ground. The London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport. Vishwas was the only passenger to survive.
What we know about Vishwas Kumar Ramesh’s health?
Sunny shared that Vishwas remains deeply disturbed by the tragedy. “He still wakes up in the middle of the night and finds it difficult to sleep again. He doesn’t speak to anyone, not even relatives who are trying to reach out from abroad,” he said. Vishwas visited a psychiatrist two days ago and is yet to make any plans to return to London, as his treatment has only just begun.
Vishwas was seated in seat 11A, next to the emergency door. In a video interview, he described how the section of the plane where he was seated landed on the hostel grounds of a nearby medical college. Seeing the broken door, he took a chance to escape and survived. In a now-viral video, he is seen walking calmly toward an ambulance just minutes after the crash.
He was discharged from Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on June 17, the same day his brother’s remains were handed over to the family after DNA identification. On June 18, a heart-wrenching video showed Vishwas carrying his brother’s mortal remains on his shoulders to the cremation ground in Diu.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Vishwas in hospital the day after the crash. While physical injuries have healed, the psychological wounds remain raw.
What AAIB report says about Air India plane crash?
The AAIB preliminary report on the Air India Flight AI171 crash states that both engine fuel control switches were inexplicably moved from “RUN” to “CUTOFF” within one second of each other just seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad on 12 June 2025, causing a dual engine shutdown and loss of thrust. Cockpit voice recordings captured one pilot asking the other why the fuel had been cut off, with the other denying responsibility; the report does not specify which pilot made which statement. Despite attempts to restart the engines, only one showed partial recovery before the aircraft crashed into the BJ Medical College hostel, killing 241 onboard and 19 on the ground.
The report rules out mechanical failure, bird strike, and fuel contamination, but does not assign blame or explain how the switches were moved. The AAIB calls for further forensic analysis and voice identification, with the investigation ongoing.