Lakshmi Patel
BBC Gujarati

Within an hour of the Air India aeroplane crash at 13:40 local time on Thursday, I had reached Ahmedabad’s Civil Hospital and that was where I stayed for the next nine hours.

The moments that followed were heart-breaking and traumatising.

Relatives of the victims grieved for their loved ones. They were also overcome by a sense of helplessness. Everyone I met was crying.

There was anger, for many of them complained they were starving for information. Relatives waved pictures and air tickets at the police, pleading for more information.

When disallowed from getting inside the hospital, voices were raised and tempers frayed.

Many had heard the injured were to be brought to this hospital.

“My son Parth was going to London for the first time on a student visa,” Kamleshbhai from Tarapur told the BBC. His family were crying.

“We had just dropped him off and were heading home. While waiting for lunch at a restaurant, I saw the news flash of the crash on my phone,” he said.

“We immediately left for Civil Hospital, but traffic jams delayed us by an hour.”

Kamleshbhai showed Parth’s photo to the hospital staff, asking if he had been brought in for treatment. His wife, who stood beside him, cried while relatives tried to console her.

India's Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu says the flight data recorder, or black box, from the crashed Air India plane has been found.

He says the black box was recovered within 28 hours from the accident site in Ahmedabad by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).

"This marks an important step forward in the investigation," he says. "This will significantly aid the inquiry into the incident."

Planes usually carry two black boxes – small but tough electronic data recorders. One records flight data, like altitude and speed. The other records sound from the cockpit, so investigators can hear what the pilots are saying and listen for any unusual noises.

The crash of the Boeing 787 flight, even though it had just taken off, was a severe one.

The graphic below shows how the wreckage of the plane was spread over 200m (656ft).

“Maybe he’ll call me in two-three days?” says Imtiaz Ali, whose brother Javed and his family were on the Air India flight that crashed in India's Ahmedabad city on Thursday.

But until he sees his brother’s body, Mr Ali says, he won't believe he has died.

Mr Ali was among dozens of people the BBC met in the intervening night between Thursday and Friday who were waiting for news of their loved ones at Ahmedabad’s civil hospital.

"If I get sad and start crying, then I'll be uncontrollable. No-one will be able to stop me...my heart might burst," he adds.

A bit more now on the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's announcement.

The regulator says from 15 June, there will be a one-off check before flights leave India for the Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 fleet.

This will cover various systems, including the electronic engine control system and the cabin air compressor.

"Flight control inspection" will be introduced in transit until further notice.

Power assurance checks will also take place within two weeks.

India's aviation regulator has ordered extra safety checks on Air India's Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 fleet.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) says this is a "preventive measure" after the recent accident on Thursday.

In the last couple of hours, news agencies including Reuters and AFP have reported that a black box has been recovered.

Both agencies are quoting police officials.

Planes usually carry two black boxes – small but tough electronic data recorders. One records sound from the cockpit, so investigators can hear what the pilots are saying and listen for any unusual noises. The other records flight data, like altitude and speed.

The BBC is working to confirm this information and will bring you updates as soon as we have more details.

Earlier, we brought you developing news that another Air India flight from Phuket to New Delhi had to be diverted back to Thailand after reports of a bomb threat.

In an update, Airports of Thailand which manages international airports in Thailand said on its Facebook page that the pilot of the Airbus A320 radioed air traffic controllers about a bomb-threat message.

"We received a report of a bomb threat written inside the aircraft's bathroom, so the pilot informed the control tower and decided to divert the flight to Phuket International Airport after circling to burn off fuel," Monchai Tanode, director of Phuket International Airport said.

No bomb was found, but authorities have not yet been able to identify who wrote the message.

The emergency situation has now been called off and the plane left for India about an hour ago.

Many Indian media outlets have reported, citing unnamed sources, that India may ground Boeing 787 flights.

We now have a response from Air India on this: "This is not the case, at this point in time at least."

Image source, Facebook

Tributes have been paid to a woman and her grandson from Northamptonshire who are thought to have died in the plane crash.

Raxa Modha, from Wellingborough, and her two-year-old grandson, Rudra, are believed to have been flying back to England for a memorial service for Ms Modha's late husband, who recently died from cancer.

Jaya Tailor says she knew Ms Modha personally described her as "a real people's person".

"She helped her husband build a business," Ms Tailor adds. "She loved having people around her."

• The mayor of Wellingborough has also paid tribute, which you can read here.

Vishwashkumar Ramesh, a British national, is the sole survivor of the plane crash that has killed at least 241 people. He was in seat 11A on the London-bound Boeing 787 flight.

India’s state broadcaster DD News spoke to Ramesh, who is currently being treated in hospital.

“I still cannot believe how I made it out alive,” he said.

“At first, I thought I was going to die. I managed to open my eyes, unfastened my seat belt and tried to exit the plane.”

Ramesh said the side of the plane he was sitting on did not hit the hostel building and was closer to the ground floor.

“My door broke down and I saw a small space. I tried to get out of the plane,” he said.

Ramesh says he saw the aircraft crew and its passengers die in front of his eyes.

A video showing Ramesh walking away from the burning aircraft quickly went viral. He said he sustained burn injuries on his left hand and was taken to the hospital by ambulance soon after.

Early Friday morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Ramesh at the civil hospital, where he is currently being treated.

• Read more about Ramesh's interview here

Image source, DD News

Image source, Narendra Modi/X

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited the family of former Gujarat chief minister, Vijay Rupani, who was killed in the plane crash on Thursday.

Rupani was a member of Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.

Modi wrote on X: "It is unimaginable that Vijaybhai is not in our midst. I’ve known him for decades. We worked together, shoulder to shoulder, including during some of the most challenging times."

Modi described Rupani as "humble and hardworking" and said he had served "diligently" as Gujarat’s chief minister.

"Will always cherish the interactions we had. My thoughts are with his family and friends in this hour of grief," he said.

Jugal Purohit
Reporting from Ahmedabad

When the Air India plane went down on Thursday, it took lives of not just the 241 people on board, as well as some who were not on the plane.

Dr Minakshi Parikh, the dean of the BJ Medical College and Civil Hospital, says four of their students died as the plane crashed into buildings on the campus.

“There were also four relatives of our doctors who were on the campus when the aircraft crashed - they too were killed," she said.

The bodies of the crash victims have been brought to the hospital's mortuary. Staff members have been busy trying to identify bodies as hundreds of relatives wait anxiously.

“We are relying only on DNA matching to identify them. And it is something where we simply cannot rush or afford mistakes. We are working with sincerity. We want relatives to understand, and be a bit patient. We want to hand over [the bodies] as soon as possible,” she told us.

Asked how she was personally dealing with the situation, she said: “Maybe the shock will sink in later. Right now, for me and my team, there is no option but to rise to the challenge.”

Bhargav Parikh, BBC Gujarati

Image source, Bhumi Chauhan

Student Bhumi Chauhan was supposed to be on the Air India aircraft that crashed - but she was denied entry to the flight as she was late.

"Earlier I thought that Ahmedabad's traffic would cost me my ticket money and my job," she tells BBC's Gujarati service.

"Even though I lost my money, I am happy that my life was saved.

"We had reached Ahmedabad on time from Ankleshwar, but due to Ahmedabad's traffic, I reached the airport five minutes late, due to which I was not allowed to enter the airport."

Our reporter Yogita Limaye brings you more now about Akash, the 15-year-old who was killed in the building that the plane crashed into.

Read his story here.

Andrew Clarance
Reporting from Ahmedabad

A police official at the post-mortem room has told us that six dead bodies have been released so far to families who were able to identify them based on facial features.

No DNA matched bodies have been released yet as that will take more time.

Archana Shukla
India business correspondent

In Mumbai, I met the family of 34-year-old Saineeta Chakravarti, one of the crew members on the ill-fated Air India flight.

“Please come back, my good girl. Mumma is waiting,” her mother Rema Chakravarti keeps repeating these words through heavy sobs. She is still struggling to come to terms with the loss.

There is a stream of visitors coming to the house, located in the narrow lanes of Juhu-Koliwada slums here in Mumbai. Each time someone entered - a friend, a neighbour, a journalist - Rema broke down all over again. Saineeta’s father, Abin Chakravarti, sat quietly nearby, looking lost.

"Saineeta really took care of us, feeding the family and supporting her mother’s cancer treatment," he said, breaking into tears.

Neighbours and friends are helping the couple - bringing food, answering phone calls and dealing with news cameras. One of them told me he’ll be going with Abin Chakravarti to Ahmedabad this evening for the DNA sampling to identify the body.

“She loved flying — that was her passion,” her friend and ex-colleague Hemant Chandan said.

Abin pointed to a plastic aeroplane model hanging on the door alongside Saineeta's bags and guitar - a painful reminder of their daughter’s passion that brought her happiness, but also tragedy.

Image source, Getty Images

Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has said he is in touch with the UK Foreign Secretary as well as the foreign ministers of Portugal and Canada.

"Expressed our profound condolences and offered fullest support in this hour of grief," he wrote in a post on X.

There were 169 Indians, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals, one Canadian and 12 crew on the plane.

The lone survivor is a British national.

Vikas Pandey
Reporting from Ahmedabad

Dr JS Pillai, who is part of the forensic team at the Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad, told me that they are trying to identify bodies as soon as possible.

He said the team was following procedures set up by Interpol. “We are using three main identifying techniques. First is the fingerprint - if it’s available. Second is dental structures. Third is DNA testing, which is the gold standard,” he said.

He added that bodies will be handed over once one of the three methods help in identifying the victim.

Thomas Mackintosh
Live reporter

Image source, Anadolu via Getty Images

It has just gone 14:05 local time in India and 09:35 BST here in London. If you are just joining our coverage let's quickly take you through the key developments in the last few hours:

• Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited the scene of Thursday's plane crash in Ahmedabad which is known to have killed more than 240 people
• After viewing the accident site, Modi then went to a nearby hospital to meet some of those injured in the disaster
• Grieving families have been identifying bodies at Ahmedabad's Civil Hospital - all but one of the 242 people on board the London Gatwick-bound Air India flight died when it crashed into a doctors' hostel
• The sole survivor from the flight - a British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh - is being treated in hospital
• Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, 60, is among those who died - he was a pilot with more than 8,200 hours of flying experience and was just months away from retirement
• In the UK, tributes have been paid to some of the 53 Britons who were onboard the flight - including a family from Gloucester and a family from Northamptonshire
• At least eight people who were not on the Air India aircraft have also died in the crash, a senior health official has told the BBC
• The cause of the crash is still not known and investigators are still searching for the two black boxes which will provide more details