Air India's 33-Second Flight Claims 241 Lives, 1 Survivor

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Air India Flight AI171 crashed just 33 seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing 241 of the 242 people on board in India's deadliest aviation disaster in decades.

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The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner reached only 625 feet altitude before it began a rapid descent with landing gear still down, appearing to lack thrust in video footage.

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One miraculous survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a British national of Indian origin seated near an emergency exit, was thrown from the aircraft during impact.

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The crash site at BJ Medical College turned catastrophic as the plane's 125,000 liters of fuel ignited, causing additional casualties among medical students on the ground.

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Aviation experts are investigating several possible causes: dual engine failure, improper flap deployment, or landing gear issues that prevented the aircraft from gaining altitude.

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This marks the first ever fatal crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since the aircraft began commercial operations in 2011.

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Seconds before the crash, pilots issued a "Mayday" distress call to Air Traffic Control but no further communication was received.

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One flight data recorder (black box) has been recovered while search for the cockpit voice recorder continues – both crucial to understanding what went wrong.

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Among the victims was former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, while the passenger manifest included 169 Indians, 53 British nationals, 7 Portuguese, and 1 Canadian.

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International aviation authorities from the UK and US are joining India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau to determine what caused this devastating tragedy.

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