Air India has confirmed that 265 people were killed when the plane crashed moments after take-off.
In the wreckage of Air India Flight 171, which tragically crashed with 242 passengers on board in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad, a remarkable discovery has emerged from the ruins. An almost-intact copy of the Bhagavad Gita has been found at the crash site in Ahmedabad, despite the massive explosion that gutted much of the aircraft and the surroundings where it crashed. The holy scripture was discovered in the wreckage and was found largely unscathed.
Sources told Times Now that one of the passengers had been carrying the holy book, which was recovered from the debris with minimal damage.
Boeing 787-8, Air India flight 171, crashed shortly after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday night. According to Air India, of the 230 passengers, 169 were Indians, 53 were British, 7 were Portuguese, and 1 was Canadian.
The pilot of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner issued a ‘Mayday’ distress call, denoting a full emergency, soon after takeoff, the Air Traffic Control at Ahmedabad said. However, thereafter, no response was given by the aircraft to the calls made by ATC, the aviation regulator DGCA said in a statement. There is only a sole survivor of the crash, a passenger seated in 11A.
A formal investigation has been launched by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into the deadly crash, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu confirmed. He informed that the Indian government was also constituting a high-level committee of people with expertise in multiple disciplines to examine the crash incident and devise ways to strengthen aviation safety by preventing such incidents in the future.
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