English Corner
Air India crash – what we know
What exactly happened?
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 plane crashed just seconds after takeoff. According to Flightradar24, initial data from the ADS-B system, which delivers position, speed, and altitude data every second, show that the aircraft climbed to a barometric altitude of 625 feet (190 meters). It then descended at a speed of 475 feet per minute. The cause of the crash is unclear. According to unconfirmed reports, a «Mayday» call came from the cockpit shortly before the accident. One of two flight recorders has been found, the Hindustan Times reported. The British Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) announced that it would send its own team to India to assist with the investigation.
How many victims are there?
241 people on board the plane died. Air India announced this on the news platform X. One passenger survived the accident and is being treated in a hospital. The man was sitting in seat 11A and, according to media reports, escaped through an emergency exit. According to the airline, the passengers included 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian. The sole survivor is a British national of Indian origin. It remains unclear how many people on the ground were killed when the plane crashed into a residential area.
Was it the first Dreamliner crash?
Yes, according to the Aviation Safety Network, the recent crash in India was the first ever involving this aircraft type. The Boeing 787 is a twin-engine wide-body aircraft that has been in service since 2009, with over 1,000 units delivered to airlines around the globe. However, the Dreamliner’s journey hasn’t been entirely smooth. Issues with lithium-ion batteries surfaced as early as 2013, followed by reports of fuel leaks. In March 2024, more than 50 passengers were injured during a sudden descent on a LATAM flight between Sydney and Auckland. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) later ordered inspections, citing concerns that a shifting pilot’s seat could trigger unexpected flight maneuvers.
How safe is Air India considered?
German aviation expert Heinrich Grossbongardt attests to Air India's increasingly improved quality recently. «Air India had a very bad reputation for a long time while it was state-owned,» he said on the ARD Tagesschau. However, the new owner, the Tata Group, has invested heavily and raised quality standards to such an extent «that Air India could become a member of the Star Alliance – along with Lufthansa, United, and other truly prestigious airlines.»
How safe is flying in general?
Despite tragic events such as the crash in India, airplanes are still considered one of the safest means of transport. In 2024, 334 people were killed in seven fatal aviation accidents worldwide – significantly fewer than a few decades ago. Thanks to technological advances, stricter safety standards, and better training, the accident rate per flight has fallen dramatically. In 1959, there were eleven fatal accidents per million flights; in 2023, the number was just 0.03 – a historic low. Even with the increase to 0.06 in 2024, the figure is still below the five-year average. Statistically, a person would need to fly every day for more than 15,000 years to be involved in a fatal accident. Nevertheless, takeoff and landing are the most critical phases of flight—where the majority of accidents occur.