Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, the sole survivor of the Air India flight AI171 crash in Ahmedabad, India, is recounting the horrific moments that led to the disaster and his improbable escape. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, bound for London, crashed into a medical college shortly after takeoff on Thursday, June 12, 2025, killing all 241 other passengers and crew on board, as well as several people on the ground.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Ramesh, a 40-year-old British national, described the surreal experience of surviving what should have been certain death. "I can't believe how I came out of it alive," he told DD News. "For a moment, I felt like I was going to die too, but when I opened my eyes and looked around, I realised I was alive. I still can't believe how I survived."
Ramesh recounted that shortly after takeoff, "within five to 10 seconds, it felt like it was stuck in the air." He said that strange green and white lights began flickering inside the cabin. "The aircraft wasn't gaining altitude and was just gliding before it suddenly slammed into a building and exploded," he explained.
Amidst the chaos and carnage, Ramesh found himself disoriented but alive. "At first, I thought I was dead. Later, I realised I was still alive and saw an opening in the fuselage," he said. Summoning his strength, he managed to unbuckle himself and crawl towards the opening. "I managed to unbuckle myself, used my leg to push through that opening, and crawled out. I don't know how I survived," he stated.
Outside the wreckage, Ramesh witnessed a scene of unimaginable horror. "I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me... I walked out of the rubble," he recounted. He suffered burns on his left hand and other injuries. Video footage shows Ramesh limping away from the crash site, his clothes smeared with blood and dirt.
Ramesh was traveling with his brother, Ajay, who was seated a few rows away. Tragically, Ajay did not survive the crash. "When he called us he was just more worried about my other brother, like 'Find Ajay, find Ajay,'" Nayan Kumar Ramesh, another of Ramesh's brothers, told the BBC. "That's all he cares about at the moment."
Authorities are still investigating the cause of the crash. One of the "black boxes," the flight data recorder, has been recovered. India's aviation watchdog has ordered Air India to conduct extra safety checks on its Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 planes as a preventative measure.
Experts suggest several factors may have contributed to Ramesh's survival, including luck and the location of his seat. Ramesh was seated in 11A, a window seat in the first exit row of standard economy. He told The Hindu that his side of the plane landed on the ground floor of the medical college hostel, and the impact broke open the emergency door, creating a space for him to escape. While some experts have noted that exit rows can be more dangerous due to the proximity of wing spars and fuel tanks, in this case, it seems the broken door hastened his escape from the smoke and fire.
"I just walked out," Ramesh told The Hindu, summarizing his incredible escape. While his survival is nothing short of a miracle, it is a bittersweet one, overshadowed by the immense loss of life and the tragedy that struck so many families.
