Horror as Gatwick-bound Air India Jet with 242 on board crashes only a few seconds after taking off with flaming debris and wavy smoke seen near Ahmedabad Airport

An air India Flee London Gatwick Wearing 242 passengers and the crew crashed shortly after the departure of Ahmedabad Airport in the northwestern Indian state of Gujarat.

Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, returned to the earth in the Meghani area of ​​the city, just a few minutes after leaving the runway shortly after 1 p.m. local time.

Shocking images that were shared on social media showed a huge trail of smoke that came from the crash site that was flooded in flames.

Other photos showed chunks of the trunk of the plane and tail from a demolished building.

The cause of the crash is not yet known, but a video that was placed on social media seemed to show the aircraft in a controlled way with a high nose corner and the landing gear that has been used.

Emergency services are on their way to the scene in the hope of finding survivors, but the scale of the damage shown in early images suggests that there are probably significant victims.

Allegedly the flight reached a height of only 625 feet before it started to descend, according to Flight Tracking Service Flighttradar 24, which stated that the transpond signal of the aircraft dropped only a few seconds after it left the runway.

“We received the last signal from the plane at 8:08:51 AM, only a few seconds after taking off,” said it.

The Indian news agency Ani reported that police sources had confirmed that 242 people were on board the flight.

Air India shared a short explanation in the aftermath of the crash, writing on X: ‘Flight AI171, operating Ahmedabad-London GatwickWas involved in an incident today, June 12, 2025.

“We are currently determining the details and we will share further updates at the earliest.”

Gatwick Airport then confirmed that the flight that was due to 6:25 pm was crashing during the departure.

Chunks of the hull and tail of the plane were seen from a demolished building

Shocking images that were shared on social media showed a huge trail of smoke that came from the crash site near the International Airport this morning

The cause of the crash is not yet known. Emergency services are on their way to the scene

Firefighters work on the location of an airplane that crashed in the northwestern city of Ahmedabad in India in the state of Gujarat, Thursday12 June 2025

Thick feathers of black smoke are seen that rise from the crash site

A Luchtexpert Julian Bray told MailOnline: ‘It is a Boeing Dreamliner that has fallen – not sure if they have succeeded in getting someone out of the plane.

‘If it has indeed crashed and they can use the pillows, they must be able to drop people off within 90 seconds. I am aware that fire equipment is present – this is a major incident.

‘It is very disappointing that it is a Dreamliner because it is a state-of-the-art boeing. We cannot exclude security problems. But this is all speculation on my part. ‘

The weather conditions were calm at the time of the accident with clear skies and a wind speed of only seven knots, or eight miles per hour.

India’s aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said in a statement: “Shocked and destroyed to learn about the flight crash in Ahmedabad. We are on the highest alert.

‘I personally follow the situation and have ordered all aviation and emergency aid agencies to take fast and coordinated action.

‘Rescue teams are mobilized and all efforts are made to ensure that medical help and auxiliary support are brought to the site. My thoughts and prayers are with all those on board and their families. ‘

The tragedy is the latter in a series of disasters with Boeing Jets and comes only six months after a 737 crashed in South Korea, killing 179.

In October 2018, Boeing’s Lion Air Flight 610 in the Java Sea dived shortly after taking off Jakarta, in Indonesia, killing all 189 people on board.

Subsequently, in March 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight crashed 302 minutes after leaving Addis Ababa, which resulted in the death of 157 passengers and crew.