Air India Ahmedabad Plane Crash: DGCA summons Air India, Air India Express for urgent meeting

“Going back happily, happily, happily calm,” said British national Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek in a video posted on social media just before boarding the ill-fated Air India flight AI171 from Ahmedabad to London. The June 12 post turned out to be his last, as he died along with 241 others when the Boeing 787-8 crashed into a medical college complex shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport.

Fiongal was travelling with his husband, Jamie Meek, on what would tragically become the couple’s final trip together. In the video, the couple is seen smiling and chatting at the airport. “We are in the airport, just boarding. Goodbye India,” they say, before Fiongal adds with a laugh, “Don’t lose your patience with your partner. Going back happily, happily, happily calm.”

Another video, recorded just a day before the crash, shows Fiongal reflecting on their journey. “It’s our last night in India, and it’s quite a mind-blowing thing that has happened. We are going to put all this together and create a vlog about the whole trip,” he says.

Officials from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have surveyed the site of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad that claimed at least 270 lives, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing sources.

According to a source with direct knowledge, representatives from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also joined the NTSB team in assessing the crash site. US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy had announced on Friday that a joint team from the FAA and NTSB would be sent to India following the tragedy.

Aircraft manufacturer Boeing and engine maker GE, whose components were used in the crashed Air India aircraft, are also dispatching technical teams to assist in the investigation.

“We’ll take action should any recommendations come forward from the NTSB’s investigation,” Duffy stated.

Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi on Sunday announced that the DNA identification of 22 additional victims from the AI 171 plane crash has been completed, bringing the total number of identified victims to 42.

“Update as of 1:00 PM – Since 9 PM last night, our teams have worked relentlessly to match DNA samples. We have successfully identified 22 more victims, taking the total to 42,” Sanghavi said in a post on X.

He further noted that forensic teams from the State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) are continuing their efforts around the clock to identify the remaining victims.

Seventeen year old Aryan Ansari who recorded the video of the Air India Dreamliner 787-8 crashing to the ground and getting engulfed in massive flames said he was attempting to capture how planes fly to show his friends when the mishap took place.

An additional 22 DNA samples have been matched, bringing the total to 42 matched DNA samples so far.

CM Rupani’s DNA sample was found too and has been matched with a relative.

Gujarat State administration had arranged for the death certificates of those who died in the recent Air India plane crash to be issued directly at the hospital, sparing grieving families the need to visit multiple offices, Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Banchha Nidhi Pani told ANI.

Three days after a London-bound Air India plane crashed in Ahmedabad, authorities here have so far identified 32 victims through DNA testing and bodies of 14 have been handed over to their families

NDRF teams are working tirelessly at the Ahmedabad crash site. Heavy forces have been deployed to keep the situation under control.

Relatives and loved ones of the victims of the fatal Air India crash mourn the loss of life. Visuals of last rites of the crash victims emerge. Kin of Jayaben Gajjar and Kalpana Prajapati are grieving in this difficult time.

As the DNA testing continues, nine more bodies were reported to the testing lab for sampling and matching.

Imam Qasim Rashid Ahmad, British national and Founder-Chairman of Al-Khair Foundation, says: “I am here to be with the affected families and to stand with India. “

Veteran actor Zeenat Aman took to social media to share an emotional moment after boarding an Air India flight.

“Boarded an Air India flight this morning and found myself absolutely overwhelmed with emotion as I buckled my seat. May our collective grief offer some solace to those who lost their loved ones,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

Civil Hospital officials revealed that former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani, who was also on the fatal AI-171 flight, his body is yet to be identified. They have not been able to match the DNA sample yet.

Dr. Rajnish Patel shared that 31 victims have been identified via DNA testing so far. As bodies are either charred beyond recognition or have been severely damaged, DNA samples need to matched carefully. 12 bodies have been handed over to the relatives so far

Turkish officials deny claims that Turkish Technic maintained crashed Air India’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.

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Among the ten cabin crew members were two from Manipur who lost their life in the Air India Ahmedabad plane crash. The victims were 21-year-old Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam from Thoubal district and 28-year-old Lamnunthem Singson.

The authorities have revealed that four medical students have died following the deadly Air India plane crash on the BJ Medical College’s hostel. From the 20 admitted students, 11 have been discharged, and eight to nine people are still under treatment.

Contact has been established with 11 families of foreign nationals aboard the Air India plane. Most of the foreigners killed in the plane crash are UK nationals.

“One entire team has been set up for the foreign nationals. We have contacted the Deputy British Consul General. Our deputy collector-rank officer is in touch with them. The MEA (Ministry of External Affairs), Air India are in touch with them,” shared officials..

In order to avoid any administrative problem, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation will issue a death certificate on the spot. The village patwari can then immediately issue a family relation card so that they do not face any inheritance issue, Alok Pandey told PTI.

The Gujarat government will assign grief counsellors to the families of victims of the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash to deal with the mental trauma, a senior official has said.

As many as 230 teams have been formed to coordinate with families of the victims, Gujarat relief commissioner and revenue secretary Alok Pandey told PTI.

Ahmedabad Civil Hospital has identified 19 victims after thorough DNA testing of Air India Plane Crash tragedy, as confirmed by Minister Harsh Sanghvi.

State Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) unit team and National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) are working relentlessly.

Former General Manager of the Airport Authority of India and noted aviation consultant Gurmukh Singh Bawa called the recent air tragedy a “miracle within a tragedy” after 241 passengers died in the crash with a lone survivor.

Bawa said the survival of even one person in such a devastating event was “nothing short of miraculous.”

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday visited the site of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, in which at least 270 people were killed.

Calling the accident an “unimaginable tragedy,” Kharge offered deepest condolences to the victims of the plane crash.

“Visited the crash site of the devastating aeroplane tragedy which has shaken the nation. My deepest condolences and thoughts are with the families of the victims, crew, pilot and people on the ground who have lost their lives, including medical students. It is an unimaginable tragedy. The country is mourning and our prayers are with the bereaved,” Kharge wrote on X Kharge was accompanied by Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Pawan Khera and others.

King Charles III and other members of the royal family, dressed in uniform, wore black armbands and observed a moment of silence during the monarch’s annual birthday parade on Saturday, in honour of those who died in this week’s Air India plane crash.

According to Buckingham Palace, the King personally requested the tribute “as a mark of respect for the lives lost, the families in mourning, and all the communities affected by this awful tragedy.”

Three insurance companies on Saturday said they have relaxed the claim settlement process for Air India plane crash victims.

Understanding the overwhelming emotional strain that arises from procedural challenges in such situations, SBI Life has eased the claim process to offer faster financial assistance.

Claim can be intimated with minimum documents like claim form, policy document and details of KYC and bank account of the nominee, SBI Life said in a statement.

To support affected families, HDFC Life in a separate statement said it has simplified its claim process. Nominees/legal heirs can now initiate claims with just a proof of death from local authorities (Government, Police, or Hospitals).

ICICI Lombard in a statement said it is working closely to ensure a thorough and timely assessment of claims, while offering full support and it remains committed to those affected.

– via PTI

A PTI report has quoted a government doctor confirming that DNA samples of 11 victims of Ahmedabad plane crash has matched with kin so far. The identified bodies will soon be handed over to the families. One body has been handed over to the family after DNA identification so far.

The identities of nine of the 241 passengers who were killed in the Air India AI-171 Dreamliner crash on June 12 were confirmed through DNA matching by Saturday afternoon, Indian Express reported. Among them, the body of Poornima Patel from Dakor in Gujarat’s Kheda district was handed over to her family, the report further stated.

Air India has announced an interim financial aid of Rs 25 lakh to the families of the deceased and for the sole survivor. “This is in addition to the Rs 1 crore or approximately 85,000 GBP support already announced by Tata Sons. All of us at Air India are deeply saddened by this loss. We mourn with the families, loved ones, and everyone affected,” the company posted on X.

Dozens of families wait outside Ahmedabad Civil Hospital for information on claiming the bodies of their loved ones who were killed in the Air India plane crash. Only six victims have been identified through DNA matching, with eight others identified visually by family members. The process of identification is being accelerated, with additional personnel and resources deployed.

DNA profiling is essential for bodies charred beyond recognition. DNA samples from grieving relatives are being collected at the civil hospital and sent to FSL facilities in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar for testing. Police official Chirag Gosai said nearly 220 families had already provided samples.

FSL Director HP Sanghvi acknowledged the difficulties involved in identifying victims exposed to extreme heat. “The intense flames destroy most visible identifiers and severely affect DNA quality,” he said. “We’re working with great care to extract and match samples. Each test takes between 36 and 48 hours and is being done in batches, with multiple tests running simultaneously,” Sanghvi added.