Minister says black box found at crash site as families await answers

Summary

India's civil aviation minister says a black box has been found at the Air India plane crash site in Ahmedabad
All but one of the 242 people on the London-bound flight died when it crashed into a residential area shortly after take-off on Thursday
It is not yet clear how many people on the ground were killed - an official tells the BBC at least eight have died
The sole survivor, British national Vishwashkumar Ramesh, who was in seat 11A, is recovering in hospital and says: "I still cannot believe how I made it out alive"
There were 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian on the flight, Air India says
A doctor tells the BBC they are relying on DNA matching from families to identify victims, as relatives wait anxiously for news

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'I don't believe it yet': Passengers' families wait for answers

Live Reporting

Edited by Tinshui Yeung and Jemma Crew in London, with Vikas Pandey in Ahmedabad

Latest photos as rescuers return to crash site and families mourn loved onespublished at 05:27 British Summer Time 13 June

It is 10:00 local time in Ahmedabad, where the crash site is now visible again in the light of day. Grieving families are mourning in the streets.
Here are some of the latest photos from the scene.
Image source, Reuters
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A man weeps outside of the post-mortem room as he mourns a family member who died
Image source, EPA
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National Disaster Response Force workers arrive at the scene of the crash, carrying stretchers
Image source, Reuters
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Another pair wait outside the post-mortem room at a hospital
Image source, EPA
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One man holds up his phone to show a picture of the relative he has lost in the crash
Image source, Reuters
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Medics have been cross-checking family members DNA to that of the victims to identify their bodies
A view of the building where the plane crashedpublished at 05:21 British Summer Time 13 June

Our reporter Vikas Pandey took this photo today of the damaged buildings at the crash site. As we have been reporting, the plane crashed into a doctors' hostel, an accommodation for local medical professionals.
Image source, Vikas Pandey/BBC
Image caption,
An aerial view of the building where the plane crashed
'It's almost inexplicable' - aviation expert on sole survivorpublished at 05:18 British Summer Time 13 June

British man Vishwashkumar Ramesh was the only person to survive the plane crash in Ahmedabad.
"This is almost unheard of" Guy Gratton, associate professor of aviation and the environment at Cranfield University tells BBC Newsnight.
"A modern airliner is designed to be crashworthy" meaning "if a crash happens everybody has the best possible chance of surviving," he says.
Because of this,"either you see a large number of survivors, or you see none because the accident was so severe. So to see one is really unusual," Gratton adds.
He says if he has to guess, Ramesh's seat - in 11A - could have been "thrown clear" from the plane in the crash, with him still in it, and he was "just incredibly lucky".
Image source, Seatguru/BBC
Forensic experts at crash sitepublished at 05:12 British Summer Time 13 June

Forensic experts are at the crash site to gather evidence related to the accident.
As we have been reporting, there is heavy police presence at the airport and on the roads leading to it today.
Image source, PTI
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Forensic experts at the crash site
Lots of activity at hospital as Modi visitspublished at 05:06 British Summer Time 13 June
Arunoday Mukharji
Reporting from Ahmedabad

I’m at the civil hospital in Ahmedabad where there’s a lot of activity.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just reached here to meet the people who were injured when the plane crashed into the doctors' hostel close to the airport.
We know 241 people on board the plane were killed, but officials haven’t yet released the number of casualties on the ground or those injured after the plane hit the building.
The media has been stopped a few metres away from the hospital. There’s heavy police presence.
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Heavy police presence outside the civil hospital
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The media has been stopped a few metres away from the hospital that Modi is visiting
Modi arrives at the hospitalpublished at 04:57 British Summer Time 13 June

We're now bringing you visuals of Prime Minister Narendra Modi reaching the civil hospital in Ahmedabad. He is expected to meet injured people and the families of victims.
We'll keep bringing you updates.
Media caption,
PM Modi reaches civil hospital
Modi leaves crash site, heads to civil hospitalpublished at 04:47 British Summer Time 13 June
Vikas Pandey
Reporting from Ahmedabad

Modi has now left the crash site after spending about 20 minutes there.
He didn’t give any statement. Most media outlets were kept away.
The prime minister is now headed to the civil hospital where he is likely to meet the families of the victims.
Heavy police presence as Modi visits crash sitepublished at 04:36 British Summer Time 13 June

As we've just reported, PM Modi has reached the crash site. Here's a glimpse of the heavy security on the ground ahead of his arrival.
Media caption,
Heavy police presence at Modi expected to visit crash site
PM Modi reaches crash sitepublished at 04:35 British Summer Time 13 June

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived at the crash site in Ahmedabad city.
We'll bring you updates from the ground.
Uneasy silence on Air India Delhi-Ahmedabad flightpublished at 04:25 British Summer Time 13 June
Vikas Pandey
Reporting from Ahmedabad

The crash was on everybody’s mind as I boarded the flight this morning. My co-passengers, the crew and even the ground staff looked a bit tense.
The usual cheer of the Air India cabin crew was replaced by a quiet namaste - the Indian way of greeting with folded hands.
The passengers next to me, and the ones in the row ahead, were busy discussing the probable causes of the crash.
There were some Air India staff on this flight - many of them were heading to Ahmedabad to help with the families of the victims.
India announces a formal investigation into crashpublished at 04:22 British Summer Time 13 June

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Aircraft debris seen at the crash site
Last night, India announced a formal investigation into the Air India crash.
Federal Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said that India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has initiated the investigation in line with international protocols.
"Additionally, the government is constituting a high-level committee comprising experts from multiple disciplines to examine the matter in detail," Kinjarapu said in a post on X. "The committee will work to strengthen aviation safety and prevent such incidents in future."
On Thursday, Chris Rocheleau from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US had said that an "expert team" was on its way to India to help investigate the crash.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also said a team from the country had been dispatched to Gujarat to join the investigation.
PM Modi set to visit crash site soonpublished at 04:13 British Summer Time 13 June
Vikas Pandey
Reporting from Ahmedabad

The road leading to the crash site has been blocked this morning.
A police officer told me that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to visit shortly.
Unlike yesterday, there is no crowd but there is heavy security deployment.
Airport centres set up to help relatives travel to Ahmedabadpublished at 03:59 British Summer Time 13 June

Air India says it has set up assistance centres for friends and relatives at Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Delhi and Gatwick airports "to provide support and take care of the needs of the families and loved ones".
"These centres are facilitating the travel of family members to Ahmedabad," the airline says in a tweet.
UK couple on plane shared video from airport before boardingpublished at 03:43 British Summer Time 13 June

Image source, Instagram
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Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek posted an Instagram story before their flight
A UK couple who filmed a video of themselves laughing and joking at the airport before taking off were among the 53 British nationals who were onboard the Air India flight.
Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek, who run a spiritual wellness centre, posted an Instagram story referencing a "10-hour flight back to England".
In an earlier post, they recalled their "mind-blowing" trip to India and said they wanted to make a vlog about it.
Nick Meek, Jamie's brother, told the Times newspaper: "It's a lot to take in and we only heard this news a couple of hours ago."
More: Who are the victims of the Air India plane crash?
Who owns Air India?published at 03:14 British Summer Time 13 June
Peter Hoskins
Business reporter in Singapore

Air India was bought by the country's biggest multinational business Tata Group just over three years ago.
The airline, which was founded in 1932 and was originally a Tata-owned company, had been under government ownership since 1953.
Established in 1868, Tata Group is known as the "salt to software" conglomerate, with operations around the world ranging from telecoms to defence manufacturing and hotels to online retail.
It owns a number of global brands including British luxury car maker Jaguar Land Rover, Tata Steel and tea firm Tetley.
Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
Too early to consider grounding Boeing 787 flights, US suggestspublished at 02:32 British Summer Time 13 June

Image source, Getty Images
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Sean Duffy says his heart goes out to the families of the victims
At a news conference earlier, US transport officials were asked if there was "anything that would lead you to believe that the 787 fleet needs to be grounded?" - but they suggested it was too early for that.
Chris Rocheleau, from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), replies that an "expert team" is on its way to India to help investigate the crash, but stresses "this is so preliminary".
"If there's any information that becomes available to us regarding any risk, we will mitigate those risks immediately," he adds.
US Transport Secretary Sean Duffy also says any safety changes would be made "immediately".
And Duffy adds: "They have to get on the ground and take a look. Again, right now it'd be way too premature."
What does the crash mean for Boeing?published at 01:50 British Summer Time 13 June
Nick Marsh
Transport correspondent

Image source, Reuters
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Boeing's 787 Dreamliner aircraft was launched in 2011
Last month, Boeing celebrated carrying its billionth passenger on the 787 Dreamliner - an impressive feat given it only launched 14 years ago.
Until today's tragic Air India crash in Ahmedabad, the model was a mainstay of intercontinental travel and had an exemplary safety record.
So far, there is nothing to suggest any fault on Boeing's side today in India. A much fuller picture will come once the plane's black boxes - the electronic recording devices that store vital flight information - have been recovered.
One pilot I spoke to said that nowadays it's rare for a manufacturer fault to cause a fatal incident.
It's also important to remember that when you fly commercially, you will almost always either be on a Boeing or an Airbus model as the plane-making industry operates as an effective duopoly.
Even so, Boeing has found its name associated with yet another tragic aviation incident.
'I wonder if I’ll be able to take the flight ever again'published at 00:52 British Summer Time 13 June
Zoya Mateen
Reporting from Ahmedabad

It was just two months ago in April, that Amaan Mansuri took the same AI171 flight that crashed today to return to London, where he works.
“I had come down to Ahmedabad to celebrate Eid with my family. I’ve taken the same flight, same route three times before, it was like a routine for me and I’ve never felt unsafe.”
Until now. Mansuri says he’s "shocked, terrified and in disbelief" since he heard about the crash.
"Sitting here, I am still processing what happened. I wonder if I’ll be able to take the flight ever again."
British couple and four-year-old daughter among victimspublished at 00:24 British Summer Time 13 June

Image source, Family handout
Britons Akeel Nanabawa and Hannaa Vorajee and their four-year-old daughter Sara are among the victims of the crash, it's been confirmed.
Abdullah Samad, the headteacher of Sara's primary school describes Sara as a "ray of sunshine" who "lit up the classroom".
Samad says the married couple, from Gloucester in England, were well-known for their charity work and generosity: "They touched lots of people and they will be missed by lots of people.
"They helped fundraise for the humanitarian efforts in Gaza and medical care for poor individuals in India. That was part of their service to the community," he says.
- Read more: Girl killed in plane crash was 'ray of sunshine'
'What are we to do?' Parents wait at Ahmedabad hospital for son's remainspublished at 23:55 British Summer Time 12 June
Zoya Mateen
Reporting from Ahmedabad

Sameer Shaikh says his son, Irfan - a crew member with Air India - didn’t call him very often, but he always informed him before taking off and after landing a flight.
So when Shaikh received a call in the afternoon from the airline, he says he was confused - his son was supposed to be on his way to London on duty.
“But instead, we found out he died in a crash.”
Shaikh, who lives in Pune city, immediately flew down to Ahmedabad with his family to collect his son's body.
He says an Air India official at the Civil Hospital helped him with the identification procedure required to claim the body.
“But police didn’t let us take my son back. They asked us to come back in three days, after the DNA sampling all the victims was completed,” he alleges.
Devastated, he and his wife have been pacing the hospital premises, looking for help and answers.
“What are we to do?” He asks, pointing to his crestfallen wife, who sits in a corner of the street, sobbing inconsolably. "How can we wait three days when we know it’s our son?”