More than 200 people have died in a plane crash in the Indian city of Ahmedabad, Kanan Desai, a senior city police officer, told Reuters. According to preliminary data, there are no survivors, BTA reports.
The Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner, flying to London, crashed shortly after takeoff at 1:39 p.m. local time. There were 242 people on board.
“The building the plane crashed into is a dormitory for doctors. "We have cleared about 70-80% of the area and will soon complete the clearance," a senior police official told reporters, quoted by „Reuters“.
According to authorities, there were 53 British citizens, 169 Indians, one Canadian and seven Portuguese on board.
According to Indian television channel CNN-News18, the plane crashed in the canteen of a dormitory at a state medical college. Many medical students also died in the impact.
Police said that more than 100 bodies, most of them badly charred, were transported for autopsy to the local government hospital.
The causes of the crash are still being clarified.
In recent years, the company „Boeing“ has been linked to a number of aviation accidents, including fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019. According to the British newspaper Daily Telegraph, this is the first crash involving the “Boeing 787 Dreamliner“ model, which has been in service for 14 years.
“Air India“ specified that the pilot of the crashed plane was highly experienced and had over 8,200 flight hours.