Plane crashed with 242 people on board

According to official figures, many people died in the crash of a passenger plane in India . Indian Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda announced on Platform X that he had received information that there were numerous fatalities. He did not provide an exact number.

According to Air India, there were 242 passengers and crew on board. The injured were to be taken to nearby hospitals. Images and unverified videos provide some devastating impressions of the crash scene. The plane reportedly crashed into a building.

Flight AI171, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, was scheduled to fly from Ahmedabad in the Indian state of Gujarat to London Gatwick, arriving in England that evening. The crash occurred just seconds after takeoff. According to the airline, citizens of India, Great Britain, Canada, and Portugal were on board. Twelve crew members were assigned to the flight.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on X that his thoughts and prayers were with "our friends in India and all those currently hoping to find their loved ones." British Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote that the scenes were "shocking." A spokeswoman for the EU Commission expressed her condolences. "Our thoughts are with all those affected, their relatives, families, and friends," she said in Brussels.

According to data from the aircraft tracker "Flightradar24," the eleven-year-old aircraft with the registration VT-ANB was scheduled for the flight. It was scheduled to take off from western India at 1:10 p.m. and land at Gatwick Airport at 6:25 p.m. (local time). Ahmedabad is one of India's largest cities and is located in the west of the country. According to the 2011 census, 5.6 million people lived there.

According to Flightradar24, initial data from the ADS-B system, which provides position, speed, and altitude data every second, show that the aircraft climbed to a barometric altitude of 625 feet. It then descended at a speed of 475 feet per minute. The cause of the crash is still unclear. The PA news agency quoted Natarajan Chandrasekaran of Air India's owners as saying it was a "tragic accident." The primary focus is on supporting all affected individuals and families.

Immediately after the crash, videos and images from the scene of the accident circulated on social media. The unverified footage also shows the work of rescue workers and numerous wreckages.

Little is known about the fate of the 242 people on board. Many are believed to be dead. It is currently unclear whether the people, who authorities say are being taken to nearby hospitals, are exclusively passengers or whether some of the injured were also at the crash site.

According to the Aviation Safety Network Database, this was the first accident involving a 787 Dreamliner . In recent years, Boeing has repeatedly made headlines due to safety issues. The 737 Max crashes in October 2018 and March 2019 claimed 346 lives. Aviation authorities around the world subsequently grounded the model. Only after some technical improvements was the model gradually allowed back into service.