On the afternoon of 12 June 2025, Indian aviation became another black date in history. Air India flight AI‑171, which left for London Gatewick from Ahmedabad, crashed a few minutes after the takeoff. As soon as the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft flew from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Pilot gave a ‘Myde’ call and lost contacts in a few seconds. The aircraft, which was flying on the normal track, suddenly came down quickly and hit the hostel building in Meghani Nagar area. The fierce explosion and flames shook the entire area. Smoke was clouded in the sky and the locals came out of the houses due to fear. The news of the aircraft accident shook the entire country. It was not just a technical failure, but the tragedy of the end of hundreds of lives. Media channels started giving information from moment to moment and on seeing this news became global headlines. The magnitude of the accident can be gauged from the fact that the army, NDRF, and local administration had to be deployed simultaneously on the crash site. This tragedy once again raised the question that despite modern technology and all the claims of airline security, are we really safe?
The most compassionate side of the accident was the figure that broke every Indian inside. The aircraft had a total of 242 people – which included 230 passengers (217 adults, 11 children and 2 babies) and 12 crew members. According to the report, none of these survived, except a person who was miraculously rescued from seat 11A. The dead were 169 Indian citizens, while the rest included 53 British, 7 Portuguese and 1 Canadian citizens. Where this accident happened, the doctor hostel of BJ Medical College is located. At that time, dozens of students were having lunch at the building where the aircraft collided. At least 5 students died on the spot and were taken to the hospital in many injured conditions. These students were between 22 and 28 years old – they were in the beginning of their lives, closer to their dreams. This was not just a physical disadvantage for the victim families, but the part of life was taken away in which dreams, expectations, and feelings live. This incident has given such an emptiness to the parents, friends and colleagues of those students who are probably impossible to fill. This tragedy became not just an aircraft accident, but an eclipse on the aspirations of an entire generation.
When an aircraft crashes like this, everyone’s attention first leads to technical reasons. The same happened in the Ahmedabad accident. According to meteorological data, the sky was clean at that time, and visibility was better than normal. This makes it clear that the main cause of the accident can be technical or mechanical error. The aircraft that caused the accident was Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with VT‑anb registration, built in 2013 and was in Air India fleet since January 2014. The special thing is that it is the world’s first Dreamliner aircraft that fell victim to this type of crash. Within a few seconds of takeoff, the pilot gave a “myde” call, which shows that he had realized a major technical fault. Radar tracking obtained from air traffic control suggests that the aircraft suddenly lost height and fell down rapidly. This indicates either the engine failure, or serious disturbances in the control system. Now experts from DGCA, Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, Boeing and Ge Aerospace together are checking the reasons for this tragedy. It has now become mandatory to discover the black box and flight voice recorder and make it public.
As soon as the scene appeared soon after the accident, the entire administrative system became active. First CISF and Airport Security Team reached the spot. Fire brigade teams began to remove the injured and bodies from the middle of the burning aircraft and hostel debris. NDRF was specially called for relief work. The hospital associated with the doctor hostel turned into an emergency, where treatment of the injured began. Relief announcements were made immediately by the government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep condolences on the accident, while British Prime Minister Kir Starmer also expressed his condolences. Air India and Tata Group announced a compensation of ₹ 1 crore to the family of each deceased, as well as promised complete medical care of the families of the victims. The Adani Group, the operator of Ahmedabad Airport, played a special role in the relief work. The UK Foreign Office issued the helpline to contact the family of foreign nationals. At the same time, the Gujarat government declared a 3 -day state mourning. This coordinated rescue work showed that the mechanism could be active in the clock of disaster – provided both will and sensitivity are with.
As soon as the news of the accident came to light, live coverage started on media channels. #Ahmedabadcrash started trending on social media. Pictures of the accident – in which the burning tail section, the broken roof of the hostel, and the running people were visible – went viral rapidly. Not only Indians, international media institutions also covered the incident prominently. Sent condolences from Bollywood also came out. Vicky Kaushal, Janhvi Kapoor, and R. Artists like Madhavan mourned the accident in their posts on social media. These messages made the countrymen realize that it was not just the incident in Ahmedabad, it is a national tragedy. However, in some places the insensitivity of the media also came to light -showing clear pictures of bodies or asking the victim families. Also, some YouTube channels and social media accounts spread rumors that the aircraft was hijacked or it was a terrorist attack – which later proved to be a lie. Thus, we have to accept that where media is a strong medium of information, it needs to be behaved responsibly.
This incident has once again raised serious questions about aviation security. The first need is to give full autonomy to DGCA, so that it can monitor safety standards free from political or corporate pressure. Airline companies should make public the report of their technical inquiry every three months. It has also become mandatory to remove old aircraft in a phased manner and regularize the training of pilots. Efforts should be made in every airline such as simulator based training, ability to decide in emergency and mental health monitoring during flight. The black box and flight data recorder information should not be hidden from the public. The time of their investigation is fixed in the US and Europe, it should also be implemented in India. Awareness centers should be opened at the airport to provide complete information about flight insurance and security standards to passengers. This accident is not just a tragedy, but a warning. If we want, we can make it the beginning of change – so that in future, no other AI‑171 becomes ashes before reaching our destination.
