Civil Aviation Minister says Probe initiated into Air India flight crash
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New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu stated on Thursday that authorities had launched a formal investigation into the Air India flight AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad.
He noted that the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, which operates independently under the Civil Aviation Ministry, would be handling the probe in accordance with international standards laid out by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
In a post on X, the minister also mentioned that the government would form a high-level committee made up of experts from various fields to conduct a thorough examination of the incident, TNIE reported.
Following the accident, flight operations at Ahmedabad Airport were briefly halted. However, the Civil Aviation Ministry later confirmed that the airport is available for flight operations from 4.05 pm., emphasizing that all necessary flight safety protocols were being strictly observed.
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Air India flight AI-171 was carrying 232 passengers, including two infants, along with 10 crew members.
The aircraft reportedly took off at 1:38 p.m. and crashed approximately five minutes later in Meghani Nagar, a residential area. The DGCA noted that the flight was being operated by Captain Sumit Sabharwal and Co-pilot Clive Kunder.
Witnesses reported visible smoke from the site, prompting an immediate response from the airport's emergency team.
In response to the incident, the Director General of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau was dispatched to Ahmedabad to oversee the investigation.
