New Delhi [India], June 12 : Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday expressed deep sorrow over the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad.
Describing the incident as "extremely painful," Dhami extended his deepest condolences to the families of the deceased passengers who lost their lives in the accident.
In a post on X, he wrote, "The news of the untimely death of many passengers in the unfortunate plane crash in Ahmedabad is extremely painful. I express my deepest condolences to the deceased passengers, medical college students and crew members in this heart-wrenching accident. I pray to God to grant the souls of all the departed a place in His feet and provide strength to the bereaved families to bear this immense pain."
Confirming the incident, Air India said that among the 242 passengers, 169 were Indians, 53 Britishers, seven Portuguese and one Canadian national.
"Air India confirms that flight AI171, from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, was involved in an accident today after take-off. The flight, which departed from Ahmedabad at 1338 hours, was carrying 242 passengers and crew members on board the Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Of these, 169 are Indian nationals, 53 are British nationals, 1 Canadian national and 7 Portuguese nationals. The injured are being taken to the nearest hospitals. We have also set up a dedicated passenger hotline number, 1800 5691 444, to provide more information. Air India is giving its full cooperation to the authorities investigating this incident," the airline said.
One survivor has been found in the deadly crash of an Air India plane carrying 242 people, after it rammed into a nearby doctors' hostel shortly after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport, a senior police officer said.
According to officials, 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.
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.