An Air India Limited Boeing Co. 787 aircraft, travelling from Ahmedabad en route to London’s Gatwick Airport, has crashed.
Local media on Thursday reported that Flight 171 crashed shortly after takeoff. The police authorities stated that the flight was carrying approximately 242 passengers and crew.
Further analysis of the incident indicated that the aircraft had reached an altitude of 625 feet at a speed of 174 kilometres per hour, before crashing into accommodation used by doctors.
There were 169 Indian nationals on the flight, as well as 53 Britons, one Canadian national and seven Portuguese nationals, Air India says
Tracking website Flightradar24 says it received the last signal from the aircraft at 625 feet (190m) “just seconds after take off”.
Air India’s fleet comprises 128 aircraft from Airbus SE and Boeing, according to the carrier’s website. This Air India crash is the first time a Boeing 787 aircraft has come down like this.
The model was launched 14 years ago and just six few weeks ago the planemaker lauded the fact the model, also known as the Dreamliner, has reached the milestone of carrying 1bn passengers.
To mark that occasion the company said the global 787 fleet of more than 1,175 airplanes has flown nearly 5 million flights covering more than 30 million flight hours.
The crash is a major blow for the company which has been struggling to overcome a range of problems, including fatal crashes, with its 737 programmes.
It will be another test for CEO Kelly Ortberg who is about to mark his first anniversary in the job.
He was brought in to try and help the US planemaker sort out a range of problems that were raising questions about its future.
