- Safiu Kehinde
A London-bound Air India plane conveying 242 people has crashed shortly after take-off in Ahmedabad, western India.
The Flight AI171 was travelling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick.
Local police said the plane crashed on a residential area after leaving the airport
Confirming the incident, Air India’s management disclosed that there were 169 Indian nationals on the flight, as well as 53 Britons, one Canadian national and seven Portuguese nationals.
The airline is however yet to ascertain the details surrounding the crash.
“Flight AI171 operating Ahmedabad-London Gatwick was involved in an incident,
“Air India said in a statement. “At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates at the earliest.” the airline stated.
Tracking website Flightradar24 says it received the last signal from the aircraft at 625 feet (190m) “just seconds after take-off”.
The plane identified as a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was, according to Flightradar24, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service.
Videos show black smoke rising over a residential area.
BBC reporter in Ahmedabad described the scene is shocking, with ambulances and rescue workers still trying to put out a fire.
On its part, Boeing said it is working to gather information after aircraft which was delivered to Air India in 2014 crashed minutes after taking off from India’s western city of Ahmedabad.
More details later…