Man Somehow Survived Air India Plane Crash

The Ahmedabad police commissioner told a news outlet that the passenger was found in seat 11A

Only one passenger survived the Air India plane crash, officials said.

The airline confirmed in a statement that there was a "sole survivor" out of the 230 passengers and 12 crew on board Flight AI171, which crashed on the afternoon of Thursday, June 12, just after takeoff from Ahmedabad. The jet had been bound for London.

The airline did not identify the living passenger beyond saying they are a British citizen "of Indian origin" who is being "treated in a hospital."

That matches local news reports about a 40-year-old British man named Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who said he survived the crash.

The police commissioner in Ahmedabad, G.S. Malik, told Asian News International (ANI) that the living passenger was found in seat 11A and transported to a local hospital. (Malik previously said to the Associated Press that there appeared to be "no survivors in the plane crash.” But he later told News18, "My earlier statement was misquoted.")

“One individual has been found alive,” Malik said, according to News18. “He is currently undergoing treatment in hospital. Doctors are closely monitoring status.”

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According to The Hindustan Times, Ramesh sustained “impact injuries” to his chest, eyes and feet.

He was visiting family in India with his brother Ajay Kumar Ramesh, 45, and was returning to the U.K. when the crash occurred.

“Thirty seconds after takeoff, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed,” he told the Times from his hospital bed. “It all happened so quickly."

"When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran," Ramesh said. "There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital."

Ramesh was able to speak with some of his family members and told them he is "fine," according to the BBC, which spoke with a relative in the U.K.

His brother, Ajay, is now presumed dead given the airline's statement that there were no other survivors.

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Another brother, Nayank, said the family was "just shocked as soon as we heard it. I last spoke to him [Ramesh] yesterday morning. We’re devastated, just devastated," The Guardian reported.

"[Ramesh said], 'I have no idea how I exited the plane,' " Nayank said.

Video shows the plane descending quickly to the ground right after it took off. It was then seemingly consumed by a large fireball.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

The plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was “traveling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick” when it was “involved in an accident after takeoff,” Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said in a previous statement shared on X.

“Of the passengers, 169 are Indian nationals, 53 are British nationals, there are seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian national,” Wilson said.

He expressed “deep sorrow about this event” on behalf of the airline.

“We are actively working with the authorities on all of the emergency response efforts,” he said in his statement on X. “A special team of caregivers from Air India is on the way to Ahmedabad to provide additional support.”

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Wilson said Air India teams were “working around the clock to support passengers, crew and their families as well as investigators however we can.”

A help line was also set up for friends and family members impacted by the crash.

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“This is a difficult day for all of us at Air India, and our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of our passengers, crew members, their families and loved ones,” Wilson said.

He later added, “We understand that people are eager for information. Please know that we will continue to share accurate and timely information as soon as we can. But anything we report must be accurate and not speculative. We owe that to everyone involved.”