Her husband insisted she meet him for his birthday: Family of Air India crash victim
Indore (Madhya Pradesh) [India], June 13 (ANI): Among the 241 people who lost their lives in the Air India plane crash in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad a day ago was Harpreet Kaur Hora, who was on her way to London to meet her husband for his birthday.
According to her relative, Rajeev Singh Hora, the family was filled with joy as Harpreet prepared for her trip to London. “Before she was leaving for London, everyone sent congratulatory messages, and even spoke to her on the phone. After that, we learned directly from the news about what happened,” Rajeev told ANI.
Harpreet’s husband had requested that she meet him in London for his birthday on June 16; therefore, she booked tickets for the fateful flight. The family is now waiting for the DNA test results to confirm her identity, with the last rites to be performed in Ahmedabad.
“Her husband insisted she meet him in London for his birthday on 16 June, as she planned to go to London on 19 June. So she booked the tickets for yesterday… Her father’s DNA test was done yesterday. He will be called after 72 hours. The last rites will be performed in Ahmedabad. She got married in 2020,” Rajeev said.
Meanwhile, a father’s hope for his daughter to succeed in life through education was crushed after the Ahmedabad plane crash, which killed her along with all others on board except one passenger in Air India’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Payal Khatik was on her way to pursue an M.Tech course at a college in London.
Talking to ANI, a relative of Payal Khatik described how her father struggled to find the money for his daughter’s education in London. The relative said that her family placed great hope in her future.
“Our relative Payal Khatik was in that flight. She was the daughter of our relative Suresh Khatik. We all went to see her off for her flight. When we learned about the plane crash, we travelled again to Ahmedabad,” the relative told ANI.
“Our DNA samples have been taken… The financial condition of the family is not good. Suresh Khatik supports his livelihood by pulling a loading rickshaw. Payal used to take care of the family by giving tuition to the students… They took loans from the community and other places to support her education in London,” he added.
Another victim, Sanket Goswami, who was also heading to London to pursue higher education, was onboard the AI-171 plane, which crashed soon after it took off from the Ahmedabad International Airport, into a medical college complex in Meghaninagar nearby.
The victim’s family, residents of Mehsana, said Sanket was passionate and was travelling to London to pursue higher studies.
“My nephew lost his only son, Sanket Goswami. He was going to London to study. He was an enthusiastic boy. He has a younger sister,” his relative said.
The AI-171 Boeing Dreamliner 787-8 aeroplane bound for London’s Gatwick had crashed shortly after it took off from the Ahmedabad International Airport on Thursday. The airline said only one out of the 242 people on board the aircraft survived the crash.
The aircraft was piloted by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a Line Training Captain with 8,200 hours of flying experience, assisted by First Officer Clive Kundar, who had logged 1,100 flying hours.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is a division of the Ministry of Civil Aviation tasked with probing aircraft accidents in India.
A formal investigation has been launched by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into the deadly crash of Air India flight 171 that killed 241 people onboard, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu confirmed on Thursday.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), a federal agency authorised by Congress to investigate civil aviation accidents in the United States (US), is gearing up to send a team of investigators to India to assist with probing the deadly Ahmedabad plane crash. (ANI)
Doctors and families evacuate premises of medical college, recount horror of AI 171 plane crash
Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], June 13 (ANI): A day after the devastating AI 171 plane crash near Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, survivors—students, professors, staff, and family members—were seen evacuating with luggage from the premises of BJ Medical College doctors’ hostel on Friday.
The London-bound Air India flight had tragically crashed into a residential section of the medical college, housing doctors, students, and their families.
Second-year resident doctor Dr. Tarun, who barely escaped with his life and bore visible injuries, shared his horrifying experience and said,
“The fire was very intense. It was not possible to get out of my flat, so I jumped from the balcony. That’s how I survived. We are not going home right now. We will go wherever we get an accommodation… We did not even have the essentials with us. We got an opportunity to get our things from inside, so that’s what we are doing for now…”
Assistant Professor Dr. Piyush recounted his narrow escape,
“I escaped from the building and then jumped over the boundary wall in front. That’s how I got a sprain. If I had waited for 15-20 seconds inside more, I would have died of suffocation or asphyxiation… Many people lived inside with their families…”
The Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, flying from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick with 242 passengers, crashed in the Meghaninagar area shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. 241 people were killed in the crash.
Meanwhile, the father of Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam, an air hostess who died in the plane crash, claimed that he has still not received any assistance from either Air India or the state government after his daughter’s passing. He said he only received news about the crash and rescue efforts through social media.
“Air India has not informed us of anything. I got the information only through social media, like the crash, and other things. I got information on that, but after that, what was to be done or what would happen, we were not told. No one from Air India came to our house to tell about it, or even from the government,” said the victim’s father, Kongrailatpam Nandesh Kumar Sharma.
21-year-old Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam was part of the cabin crew on Air India flight AI 171.
Breaking down in front of journalists, he demanded answers from the state government on whether they will assist the families affected.
“I just want the government should say something, take care of the family. Now that she (his daughter) is gone, she is gone. I only have 3 daughters. So what will I say? I have no words,” he said.
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