A British man, Vishwashkumar Ramesh, has escaped the wreckage of the Air India crash that killed 241 people in Ahmedabad, western India. Ramesh was in seat 11A on the London-bound Boeing 787 flight when it crashed shortly after take-off.
His brother, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, told BBC News that Ramesh “has no idea how he survived” and escaped the plane as the only survivor. All other passengers and crew were killed, including 169 Indian nationals and 52 Britons.
Nayan expressed his concern for his other brother Ajay, who was also onboard.
Ramesh was seen in a hospital bed meeting Indian interior minister Amit Shah. Dr Dhaval Gameti, who treated Ramesh, said that he was disorientated with multiple injuries all over his body but seemed to be out of danger. He shared his boarding pass, which showed his name and seat number.
The plane crashed into accommodation used by trainee doctors less than a minute after take-off in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. It is not clear how many people on the ground died and the cause of the crash is still unknown. Three Britons thought to have died on the flight have been named by Gloucester Muslim Society as Akeel Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa Vorajee, and their daughter Sara.
Imam Abdullah Samad said they touched lots of people and will be missed by many people.
Couple Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek, who run a spiritual wellness centre in London, are also thought to have been on the flight. They laughed and joked in an Instagram video as they told of their “10-hour flight back to England”. Javed and his wife Mariam Syed, from West London, along with their two young children, were also on the plane.
This is the first time an 11-year-old Boeing 787 series aircraft is involved in a serious crash.
