New Delhi [India], June 12 : In the aftermath of the Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad, the airline has announced the deployment of special relief flights from Delhi and Mumbai to assist the next of kin of passengers and crew.
According to Air India, two flights, IX1555 from Delhi and AI1402 from Mumbai, are scheduled to depart at 11:00 PM on June 12, while return flights from Ahmedabad will operate in the early hours of June 13.
"Air India is organising two relief flights, one each from Delhi and Mumbai, to Ahmedabad for the next of kin of passengers and Air India staff," the Airline said on X.
"IX1555 - Delhi-Ahmedabad Time of departure: 2300 hrs on 12 June, IX1556 - Ahmedabad-Delhi Time of departure: 0110 hrs on 13 June, AI1402 - Mumbai-Ahmedabad Time of departure: 2300 hrs on 12 June and AI1409 - Ahmedabad-Mumbai Time of departure: 0115 hrs on 13 June," Air India said.
Further, Air India said that it has also set up dedicated hotlines to assist family members, including international callers.
"Next of kin of passengers and staff in Delhi and Mumbai wanting to travel on these flights can call our hotline on 1800 5691 444. Additionally, those coming in from international destinations and wanting to travel can call our hotline on +91 8062779200," it said.
The Air India plane from Ahmedabad to London with 242 passengers crashed in the Meghaninagar area near Ahmedabad airport on Thursday.
The aircraft was under the command of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, an LTC with 8,200 hours of flying experience. He was assisted by First Officer Clive Kundar, who had 1,100 hours of flying experience, the official said.
As per Air Traffic Control (ATC), the aircraft departed from Runway 23 at 1339 IST (0809 UTC). It gave a mayday call to ATC, but thereafter, no response was given by the aircraft to the calls made by ATC.
"Aircraft immediately after departure from Runway 23, fell on the ground outside the airport perimeter. Heavy black smoke was seen coming from the accident site," the official added.