The crash of Air India Flight AI171 shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport has left a trail of devastation, particularly impacting the B J Medical College and Civil Hospital campus. The incident, which occurred on Thursday, June 12, 2025, involved a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London Gatwick. The aircraft, carrying 232 passengers, 10 crew members, and 2 pilots, lost altitude and crashed into a doctors' hostel, resulting in a massive fire and significant casualties.
Among the victims were three resident doctors and a pregnant woman, the wife of a doctor at the hospital in Meghaninagar, highlighting the profound impact on the medical community. A fourth doctor is reportedly missing, adding to the anguish and uncertainty. In addition to the fatalities, approximately 21 resident doctors on the college campus sustained burns and fractures, further underscoring the severity of the crash.
The disaster struck during lunchtime, a time when many students and resident doctors were present in the hostel's dining facility. According to Dr. Tushar Patel, an internal medicine specialist, the death toll in the mess would have been significantly higher had the plane crashed moments earlier, as hundreds of doctors had recently left after finishing lunch.
The crash site was a scene of chaos and destruction, with the aircraft's wreckage spread across a wide area. The fuselage came to rest on residential quarters, while the tail section was lodged in the damaged mess building. Emergency teams, including personnel from the NDRF, IAF, BSF, and NSG, along with numerous ambulances and fire engines, were deployed to carry out rescue and salvage operations.
The flight's passenger manifest included 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian national. Among the passengers was former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who was traveling to London to visit his wife and daughter. The cockpit crew consisted of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who had accumulated 8,200 hours of flying experience, and First Officer Clive Kunder. The 10-member cabin crew included two young women from Manipur.
Initial reports suggest that the aircraft may have encountered technical difficulties shortly after takeoff, with a "Mayday" call being transmitted from the cockpit to Ahmedabad ATC before communication was lost. Aviation officials have indicated that the aircraft's black box, containing the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder, will be crucial in determining the cause of the crash.
This tragic event marks the deadliest aviation disaster in India since 2020, when an Air India Express flight skidded off a wet runway while landing at Kozhikode in Kerala, resulting in 21 fatalities. The Ahmedabad plane crash has once again raised concerns about aviation safety standards and emergency preparedness in India, prompting calls for a thorough investigation and implementation of measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
