A week after the devastating Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad claimed 270 lives, the debris, including the ill-fated aircraft's tail fin, is still lying at the site as investigators looked for clues to establish the exact cause behind the accident, said officials on Thursday.
Addressing close to 700 employees and the leadership team across the Air India headquarters and Air India Training Academy in Gurugram, Chandrasekaran urged them to stay on course, terming the accident the most "heartbreaking" crisis of his career.
'If anything happened out of the normal, there would be instantaneous ECAM, EICAS warnings, the master caution or master warnings going off.' 'It would be like a Christmas tree in the cockpit if things start going wrong.'
A five-member team, headed by Sanjay Kumar Singh, is probing the fatal crash of the Air India aircraft last month in Ahmedabad that killed 260 people. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has released its preliminary report and appointed the team.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected to release its preliminary report this week on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, which resulted in the deaths of at least 260 people. The investigation is ongoing, with the help of foreign experts, and the black box and voice recorder data are being analyzed.
'Visualise those 15 to 18 seconds: Fully loaded aircraft, pilot manually controlling with both hands (no autopilot immediately after takeoff), looking forward while switches are behind.'
'We consider everyone who lost someone in this tragedy as part of our family -- now and forever.'
The flight had departed after a delay of almost 3.5 hours as its scheduled departure was at 8.50 am, as per flight tracking website flightradar24.com.
Air India has confirmed that 241 people on board its London-bound flight were killed when the aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday.
India's last three major commercial aviation accidents --Patna (2000), Mangaluru (2010), and Kozhikode (2020) -- could offer critical safety lessons for the ongoing investigation.
The truth about what triggered the fatal crash of the Dreamliner should not only help bring the guilty to book, but also outline the future course of action in aviation safety, notes Nivedita Mookerji.
Air India's CEO defends the fitness of pilots and aircraft after a preliminary report into the crash of flight AI171 raised questions. He urged against premature conclusions as the investigation continues.
"Decoding of the black box is going to give in-depth insight into what happened moments before the plane crash," Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said at a briefing in the national capital.
The process of identification of victims by matching the DNA samples is currently underway, and the bodies will be handed over to their relatives once the process is complete.
At least 265 bodies were sent to the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital for post-mortem after the crash on Thursday. Of these, only six victims were identified as their faces were intact, inspector Chirag Gosai said.
Both the CVRs and FDRs were recovered within a week after the accident. One was retrieved from a rooftop of the building at the crash site on June 13, and the other from the debris on June 16.
The ministry of civil aviation clarified that, contrary to circulating reports, a video recorder that had been recovered at the crash site was not the DFDR.
Mathias Boe, the coach of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, on Saturday announced his retirement from coaching
When specifically asked about the reason for the crash and whether Air India is privy to any preliminary findings, Chandrasekaran said, "One would have to wait for the probe to conclude."
Why not stream all the data in real time to multiple recipients? It would make the investigation of aviation incidents much easier and far more transparent, recommends Devangshu Datta.
'In multi-pilot operations, no critical switch can be moved without the other pilot's consent.'
Of these, as many as seven are Level-1 violations, which are considered critical safety risks and require immediate corrective action by the air operator, they said.
Air India reiterated that its priority remains extending assistance to the families.
At Ahmedabad's Civil Hospital, DNA samples from over 190 relatives are being matched with victims of the Air India crash, a process expected to take up to 72 hours.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has already launched a formal investigation into the incident.
The specific reasons for the crash of the Boeing 787-8 aircraft flying from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick will be known only after the completion of the detailed probe by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.
The $1.2 billion in-space manufacturing market is expected to grow and be worth more than $20 billion by 2033.
The Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA) defends the crew of the crashed AI 171 flight, rejecting insinuations of pilot suicide and calling for a fair investigation.
Akasa Air's standalone net loss rose 18.7 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to roughly Rs 1,983 crore in 2024-25 (FY25), driven by rising employee costs, aircraft maintenance and airport charges, and a sharp increase in foreign exchange (forex) expenses, sources privy to the development told Business Standard.
'$125 million for the hull and the remaining of over $350 million for liability.'
'The AAIB will collect every single retrievable piece of the aircraft and transport it to a secure location -- usually a large hangar capable of housing a Boeing 787.' 'The entire aircraft will be laid out, each part marked and tagged, and practically rebuilt like a jigsaw puzzle.'
'The overall well-being of the pilots should be at the top of any airline's agenda in such situations.'
A Reuters report stated that the high-profile meeting reflects Ambani's growing influence in global business and diplomacy. Over the years, Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), the country's sovereign wealth fund, has invested in several Reliance ventures.
Several foreign experts were seen scouting the crash site for the last two days, checking the debris to find clues.
An official expressed hope that the DNA profiling all the victims will be completed by either Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning.
Taapsee Pannu took to Instagram to shower praise on her husband, badminton player Mathias Boe, marking her first public acknowledgement of their marital bond.
Neither anyone from the airline (Air India), nor from the government has contacted them so far, he said.
Speaking about the building in which the plane crashed, the eyewitness said, "It is a residential building, doctors live there."
The Ahmedabad Civil Hospital performed the last rites for body parts of 19 victims of the June 12 Air India plane crash. The body parts were discovered after the initial remains were handed over to families.
Pramila Patil, mother of crew member Maithili Patil, who died in the ill-fated Air India plane crash on June 12, reacted to the preliminary report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau and said Air India can't cause such negligence.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances