AI-171 crash: Ahmedabad hospital and residents recount rescue, lone survivor, and aftermath

'Bodies Were Like Cotton': First Responders Recall The Gruelling Battle To Pull Survivors From The Wreckage Of AI-171 Plane Crash

Ahmedabad: To the local residents, motorists, and ordinary citizens who were at the perimeter fence, the AI-171 plane crash disaster exists as a raw, sensory assault. For them, the timeline is measured in the blinding flash of a low-flying fuselage, the deafening roar of exploding aviation fuel, and the harrowing minutes spent pulling bodies from a sea of flame before the official rescue machinery could even reach the gates. One year after the tragedy that claimed 260 lives, the vivid first-hand accounts of eyewitnesses and the local first responders, who rushed into the black fog, present a gripping picture of an afternoon when a quiet Ahmedabad suburb transformed into an absolute inferno. For Rashmin Chauhan, a local businessman, the line between life and a horrific death was a matter of a few meters and a split-second decision. He was driving on a routine private errand toward the Shahibaug area, navigating the afternoon traffic just 500 meters from his house, when the sky darkened unnaturally. After Italian Media Report On Air India Crash, NCP's Amol Mitkari Suspects Sabotage In Ajit Pawar Plane Incident "The force of the explosion sent a shower of debris rattling against my car windows. I had to frantically throw the car into reverse just to escape the encroaching heat. As I tried to turn back, the wall of fire kept pushing forward, moving ahead of me." As the smoke parted slightly in front of his windshield, Chauhan was confronted with the immediate, visceral human cost of the impact. "There were bodies lying on the road right ahead of my car. I was paralysed with fear.” Chirag Patel, who runs a shop nearly 300 metres from the crash site, ran to the site after hearing an explosion and encountered a chaotic, high-temperature crisis zone that blocked out the afternoon sun. Air-conditioning units and vehicles on the premises were exploding sequentially due to the ambient heat, creating secondary blasts that pushed back the crowds. "The air-conditioning units were bursting violently, and the fire was so intense that initially, no one – not even the arriving fire brigade – could get close to the core area. An aviation disaster of this scale is a nightmare because everything happens in a single flash. You realise very quickly that you cannot save many people inside the cabin. It took just one second, and in that one second, everything was completely incinerated to ash,” he added.'Absolutely Disgusting!': Air India Plane Crash-Themed Durga Puja Pandal Goes Viral, Sparks Outrage While the civic body’s fire tenders were yet to arrive, local residents like Kaushik Yadav and Rajnikant Parmar did not wait for official orders. They ran directly toward the towering column of black smoke. Despite the immense danger, these local volunteers formed an immediate perimeter defense.  Parmar had rushed to the site after a frantic phone call from his father, who reported a massive explosion near their locality, which was evident to the son all the way from Lal Darwaza. When Parmar arrived near the local canteen, he found the landscape littered with fragmented aircraft components and scattered fuselage panels. He and Yadav, along with other like-minded people, immediately began digging through the rubble of the collapsed hostel structures. "We pulled so many bodies out of that debris. We pulled out young children who had passed away. The bodies had become soft, light, almost like cotton. A massive wing of the plane was resting right in the middle of the compound." Air India Sees Rise In Pilot Sick Leaves After Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Govt Yadav reached the impact zone within 15 minutes of the crash, arriving before the first wave of ambulances had managed to navigate the congested municipal roads. He recalled that the oppressive heat prevented them from moving into certain sectors, and they had to wait out the first few minutes until the fire tenders arrived. “Our immediate instinct was to secure the site and recover what we could. We began pulling out jewelry, cash, and personal belongings from the edge of the debris field, working non-stop until three o'clock that morning to assist the teams,” he said. The psychological toll on the volunteers grew heavier as the rescue operation stretched into days. The initial adrenaline faded, leaving behind the grim reality of a recovery mission. "Even five to six days after the crash, we were still recovering remains from beneath the deep rubble. We kept finding severed limbs days later,” said Parmar. “We pray to God that no human being ever has to witness such a sight, where entire families are completely scattered and obliterated in a moment. Even now, when we recall those hours, our eyes get teary.”

6 hours ago

The Untold Psychological Toll Of AI-171 Crash: Inside Ahmedabad's Unhealed Aviation Tragedy

Ahmedabad: Time has refused to move for the survivors and the families of the victims of the catastrophic Air India crash as their calendars remain permanently stuck on June 12, 2025. While the corporate machinery of aviation efficiently cleared the debris, settled immediate logistics, and reinstated flight schedules, it left behind a profound, invisible crisis of psychological trauma. One year on, an intimate look at those left in the wake of the disaster reveals that physical survival was merely the preface to a lingering mental purgatory. For those who were closest to the impact zone, the psychological fallout manifests as a sensory prison. Dr Rushil Khatri, a third-year post-graduation student and a resident doctor, lived with his wife, Kalyani, at the BJ Medical College’s residential hostel building that was clipped by the descending aircraft. Kalyani, who was the only one at home during the time of the crash, miraculously escaped physical incineration, but the events of those 25 minutes have rewritten their daily lives. Talking to The Free Press Journal, Kalyani said, "I tried to run down the stairs but the fire had totally engulfed the lower floors. I got burns on my face and my hand while trying to save myself. Once I realised I wouldn't be able to escape before the fire brigade rescued me, I ran to the balcony and stayed there until help arrived. When I look back, the memory is still entirely fresh."After Italian Media Report On Air India Crash, NCP's Amol Mitkari Suspects Sabotage In Ajit Pawar Plane Incident Dr Khatri, accustomed to clinical environments, found that medical training offered no shield against post-traumatic stress. "The first two to three months were pure depression. Even now, whenever we hear the roar of an aircraft engine, the panic returns. While travelling, the fear is overwhelming, especially during takeoff and landing. Physical trauma heals, but the mental trauma is far worse. We are still trying to come out of it, but it is incredibly difficult." The couple’s reality is shared by Rashmin Chauhan, a motorist whose car was struck by debris just 500 metres from his home as he drove past the hostel compound. He missed a horrific death by a fraction of a second. "I stopped the car as the blast occurred and bodies fell onto the road ahead of me. I only regained full consciousness an hour later from sheer shock. You cannot fathom that such a thing could happen. May God ensure no one ever has to witness what I saw,” he said. While the psychological wounds of the Khatris are private, shared in the quiet of their home, others face a trauma that is violently public. Ajay Parmar, a gardener at the nearby Civil Hospital, was visiting the neighborhood for lunch as per his daily routine when the sky erupted in a firewall of aviation fuel. He survived, but his body and mind were left fundamentally altered. "I am completely psychologically broken. No one saw what I saw. I watched a small child burn to death right in front of me. If I had tried to save him, I would have died too,” Parmar said. 'Absolutely Disgusting!': Air India Plane Crash-Themed Durga Puja Pandal Goes Viral, Sparks Outrage The trauma of survival was quickly compounded by societal rejection, as shortly after his discharge from the hospital, his wife of just one month left him, unable to cope with his disfigurement and erratic mental state. Soon after, he was told not to return to his gardening job. "People talk about me behind my back. They call me jalela (the burnt one). Even my employer told me not to come to work because others might get uncomfortable seeing my burnt skin,” he said, asserting that he will fight against Air India’s negligence. For the families of those who died, the psychological trauma is inextricably linked to an overwhelming, disruptive grief. The suddenness of the aviation disaster ripped away the structural pillars of multiple households, leaving a void where guidance and stability once stood. Vasubhai Patel’s father, Ratibhai Patel (73), had boarded the flight full of elderly excitement, eager to visit his eldest son in London for the first time in twelve years. "He couldn’t use mobile phones on his own, so once he settled in his seat, he called me from his co-passenger’s phone, happy, saying he was looking forward to the weather there," Patel says. "By the time I drove down the highway to Kalol, he was gone." Air India Sees Rise In Pilot Sick Leaves After Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Govt One year later, the patriarch's absence has plunged the family into an anchorless depression. "Without our elders, everything is a struggle. Every time I have to make a decision, I remember my father. We used to ask him before doing anything. Now, I feel completely helpless and despondent. Every night I close my eyes, his face is there. June 12 should be declared a black day,” he added. On the ground, the economic and emotional toll on the marginalised communities living near the hostel wall is equally devastating. Mukeshbhai, an auto-rickshaw driver, returned from his shift to find the mud-and-brick hut he shared with his mother, Jeeviben (76), reduced to ash. His mother, who was inside cooking lunch, was killed instantly under the weight of the aircraft’s fuselage. "When my mother was alive, life was good. We managed to get by. Now, the entire burden of survival falls on one person. Whenever I walk past this spot, the tears just come. We miss her constantly." 'We Have To Stick To Report, Whatever It Says Will Be Final': Civil Aviation Minister Rammohan Naidu On Air India Plane Crash Probe A few yards away, Sureshbhai Patni stands outside the hostel’s entrance, where once his wife ran a tea stall. His 15-year-old son, who went to deliver tiffin to his mother, had been resting on a cot in the shade when the aircraft's wing sliced through the trees, crushing and burning him. Sureshbhai had to shield his traumatised wife from the news of their son's death for twenty days while she was treated for her own burn injuries. "I told everyone in the hospital to remain silent. When my own father passed away twenty days later, I finally told her. I told her that we had to weep for two people, not just one. Now, we cannot sleep. We cannot eat. My wife spends her days taking psychiatric medication. Whenever a plane flies overhead, she looks up and relives the moment. We cannot bear to look at that site anymore,” he said. Federation Of Indian Pilots Slams WSJ Report Alleging Captain's Role In Air India Plane Crash The psychological agony of the survivors is severely exacerbated by what they describe as a wall of institutional silence. While Air India and Boeing moved swiftly to restore commercial normalcy, the release of the official accident investigation report has been plagued by delays. For the families, structural answers are a prerequisite for psychological closure. Patel said, "Our only demand is to know how this crash happened. Was it a maintenance failure by Air India? Was it a Boeing cutoff switch malfunction? We want the black box data released. The Aviation Minister promised a report within a month. We are still waiting. We will not sit quietly until we know the truth about why our fathers and children died."

7 hours ago

AI-171 Crash: The Inside Story Of The Lone Survivor & The Medical Heroes At Ahmedabad Civil Hospital

Ahmedabad: For a fleeting, deceptive moment inside the trauma center of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital exactly one year ago, there was hope. It walked in on its own two feet, sparking a ray of hope among the hospital's medical personnel that there might be many survivors. However, the hope soon faded as what followed was a series of unrecognisable, charred bodies, which could not make it to the hospital. Escorted by the 108 emergency ambulance staff, AI-171’s lone survivor Vishwas Kumar walked through the glass doors of the trauma ward, shaken but breathing. For the scrambled medical teams, his arrival was a shot of adrenaline. If one man could walk away from the international flight that had just plummeted into the adjacent residential and medical college campus, surely a wave of injured survivors would follow. After Italian Media Report On Air India Crash, NCP's Amol Mitkari Suspects Sabotage In Ajit Pawar Plane Incident Talking to The Free Press Journal, Ahmedabad Civil Hospital’s medical superintendent Dr. Rakesh Joshi recalled the horror he witnessed on the day of the crash. “We saw him enter the hospital on his legs and we thought that a lot of people would come. We mobilised every health worker and set up an immediate triage system. We were ready to save lives but the rush of survivors never came,” he said, his voice dropping as he sat in the very office where, a year ago, the grim reality of the disaster unfolded. Instead, within an hour, the green and yellow zones grew agonizingly quiet. The hope sparked by Kumar vanished, replaced by a slow, horrifying procession of the dead. For the next 50 to 60 minutes, the hospital received roughly 71 injured individuals – primarily ground casualties, including a campus gardener and medical students caught in the mess hall where the plane impacted. After that, the arrivals changed. "After an hour, it was horrifying. We were receiving only completely burned-out, charred bodies from the crash site. No one else arrived injured. It was then we realised that Kumar was the lone survivor,” he said. 'Absolutely Disgusting!': Air India Plane Crash-Themed Durga Puja Pandal Goes Viral, Sparks Outrage The numbers from June 12 last year remain etched in the hospital’s history – 260 dead. Among them were 241 passengers and crew, and 19 ground casualties, including four of the hospital's own medical students who were eating lunch when the widebody aircraft crashed on them. Dr. Joshi highlighted that the crash site was a mere 300 to 400 meters from the hospital campus and the emergency response was instantaneous but the sheer violence of the impact and the subsequent fire left nothing for the doctors to heal. "In my whole career, I have never seen such a disaster. To see so many bodies, completely charred, where you cannot recognise a single body as a human being, it is deeply difficult to process. An entire generation of doctors here had never witnessed anything of this scale,” he said, adding that what was expected to be a battle of surgeries turned out to be an 18-day mission of identifying the unidentifiable. Air India Sees Rise In Pilot Sick Leaves After Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Govt The hospital turned to the only infallible science available -- DNA matching. The superintendent explained that the hospital’s microbiology department took blood samples from the relatives, the forensic team worked on the bodies, and the forensic science laboratory ran the profiles, resulting in the first matching of DNA samples within 48 hours. The hospital transformed its medical college into a grief and administrative center. They set up a single-window system to spare grieving families the agony of bureaucratic red tape. Over 17 days, 254 victims were identified via DNA profiling while the remaining six were identified through facial recognition. Dr. Joshi recalled that the shift was about to change when the tragedy struck at around 1.38pm but none of the healthcare workers left. "The forensic teams, the pathologists and even the ward boys remained on duty till they were required. Doctors did non-stop post-mortems and sampling day and night. Just like during COVID, nobody thought about their own exhaustion or psychological trauma. They just worked,” he said. 'We Have To Stick To Report, Whatever It Says Will Be Final': Civil Aviation Minister Rammohan Naidu On Air India Plane Crash Probe Yet, the emotional scars on the medical staff remain raw a year later. As Ahmedabad marks the first anniversary of the AI-171 disaster, the visible scars on the residential campus have begun to heal, but the memories inside the Civil Hospital walls remain vivid. "As human beings, we think about how happy these families were just hours before the crash. Some were going abroad, some were going on vacation, some were sending off loved ones. In a single second, it turned into a tremendous shock. You cannot prepare your mind for that,” the superintendent concluded.

7 hours ago