Black box found at Ahmedabad crash site as families wait for answers

A black box has been found at the site of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, India’s civil aviation minister said on Friday.

The flight data recorder was recovered within 28 hours by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu confirmed.

All but one of the 242 people on the London-bound flight died when it crashed into a residential area less than 60 seconds after take-off on Thursday. An official told the BBC that at least eight people on the ground were also killed.

“The [recovery of the black box] marks an important step forward in the investigation” and will “significantly aid the inquiry” into the disaster, Mr Kinjarapu said.

Planes usually carry two black boxes – small but tough electronic data recorders.

One records flight data, such as 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.

AAIB is leading the inquiry into the cause of the crash, helped by teams from the US and UK. Boeing’s chief executive, Kelly Ortberg, said the company was supporting the investigation.

Air India said there were 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese and one Canadian on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft when it crashed moments after taking off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 13:39 local time (08:09 GMT).

Flight AI171 was scheduled to land at London’s Gatwick Airport at 18:25 BST.

On Friday, the wreckage was still scattered across the crash site, including the blackened wing of the plane, with large pieces of the aircraft stuck in buildings.

Investigators arrived at the scene and crowds were moved further away from the wreckage.

A doctor told the BBC that they are relying on DNA from relatives to identify the victims. A police official at the post-mortem room told the BBC that the remains of six people had been released to families so far, as their relatives were able to identify them based on facial features.

The sole survivor of the crash, British national Vishwashkumar Ramesh, who was in seat 11A on the flight, is still recovering in hospital.

“I still cannot believe how I made it out alive,” he told India’s state broadcaster DD News on Thursday.

“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.”

Mr Ramesh, 40, who sustained burn injuries on his left hand, said he saw the aircraft crew and its passengers die in front of his eyes.

Meanwhile, desperate families are still waiting for news of their relatives.

Imtiaz Ali, whose brother Javed and his family were on the flight, said that until he sees his brother’s body, he will not believe he has died.

“If I get sad and start crying, then I’ll be uncontrollable,” he told the BBC.

“No-one will be able to stop me… my heart might burst.”

The plane crashed in a residential area called Meghani Nagar and, even though it had just taken off, the impact was severe. Wreckage spread over 200m (656ft), according to responders.

It is still unclear exactly how many were killed on the ground, but the BBC has been told that at least eight people, who were not on the aircraft, have died.

Dr Minakshi Parikh, the dean of the BJ Medical College and Civil Hospital, said 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,” Dr Parikh said.

“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.”

On Friday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spent around 20 minutes at the site of the plane crash.

He did not speak to reporters afterwards but a video posted on his YouTube channel showed him walking around the site and inspecting the debris.

Modi also visited the location of a now-viral image that shows the tail of the crashed plane lodged in a building.

Earlier on Friday, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson also went to the crash site, later describing the visit as “deeply moving”.

According to data by tracking website, Flightradar24, the Boeing Dreamliner 787-8 had completed more than 700 flights in the year leading up to the Thursday’s disaster.

The Air India plane was 11 years old and its most common routes included flights between Mumbai and Dubai, as well as the capital New Delhi and European destinations such as Milan, Paris and Amsterdam.

The plane had operated 25 flights from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick in the past two years.

India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has ordered additional safety checks on Air India’s Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 fleet, describing it as a “preventive measure”.