Over 240 Dead as London-Bound Air India Plane Crashes into Hostel

In one of the deadliest air disasters in India’s aviation history, an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 people crashed into a residential area shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing at least 242 individuals.

The London-bound flight, headed for Gatwick Airport, plunged into the doctors’ hostel of BJ Medical College on Thursday, sending a fireball skyward and scattering flaming debris across the complex.

The crash site, located near the airport, was quickly overwhelmed with emergency personnel as bodies—many of them severely charred—were retrieved and taken to the government hospital for autopsies.

Among the passengers were 217 adults, 11 children, and 2 infants, including nationals from India, the UK, Portugal, and Canada. Authorities confirmed that many victims were medical students who were in the hostel’s dining hall at the time of the impact.

Witnesses described scenes of horror as survivors leapt from windows and flames engulfed the area. Ramila, a mother of one of the medical students, said her son was injured while jumping from the second floor to escape the blaze.

The aircraft had given a “Mayday” distress signal minutes after takeoff at 1:39 PM local time, but communication was lost shortly after. This tragic crash marks the first fatal incident involving the Dreamliner model, which entered commercial service in 2011.

Air India issued a statement saying it is still gathering details and that the injured are being treated at local hospitals.

Investigations are underway as the nation mourns a heartbreaking loss.