An Air India plane carrying 242 people bound for London Gatwick crashed near Ahmedabad airport shortly after takeoff this morning.
Videos from the scene show black smoke and a fire near the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner’s crash site.
So far, it is not known what has caused the crash, but the crash site is by accommodation for medical students at a nearby university.
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Around 50 to 60 of those students are feared to be dead.
Air India said in a statement: ‘Flight AI171, operating Ahmedabad-London Gatwick, was involved in an incident today, 12 June 2025.
‘At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates at the earliest on http://airindia.com and on our X handle.’
What do we know so far?
Flight AI171 departed Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad today at 1.39pm local time and was meant to arrive at Gatwick nine hours later.
The aircraft is an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that was carrying 242 passengers and crew.
It has been reported that 105 people have been killed in the crash.
The aircraft carried 53 British nationals, 169 Indian nationals, one Canadian, and seven Portuguese nationals.
It is not yet known what caused the crash but aviation teams are investigating the incident.
The tracking website Flightradar24 received the last signal from the aircraft at 625 feet after takeoff.
The aircraft was piloted by captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who had 8,200 hours of flying experience and co-pilot Clive Kundar, who had 1,100 hours of flying experience. There were also 10 crew on board.
He issued a mayday call then stopped responding and crashed immediately afterwards, according to India’s aviation regulator, DGCA.
In a statement, Boeing has said: ‘We are aware of initial reports and are working to gather more information.’
What have world leaders said about the crash?
King Charles is being kept updated about the ongoing situation.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said in a post on X: ‘The tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us. It is heartbreaking beyond words.
‘In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it.
‘Have been in touch with ministers and authorities who are working to assist those affected.’
Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer said his thoughts are with the passengers and families of those on board.
He said: ‘The scenes emerging of a London-bound plane carrying many British nationals crashing in the Indian city of Ahmedabad are devastating.
‘I am being kept updated as the situation develops, and my thoughts are with the passengers and their families at this deeply distressing time.’
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