“Thrust not achieved… falling… Mayday!” were the final words of the Air India pilot before the crash that claimed 270 lives.
Indian authorities have confirmed that the pilot of Air India Flight 171 issued Mayday calls moments before the plane crashed near Ahmedabad’s airport, killing at least 270 people.
“Thrust not achieved… falling… Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!” the pilot radioed seconds before the Boeing 787, en route to Gatwick Airport, struck buildings in a fiery explosion shortly after take-off.
India has ordered safety inspections of all locally operated Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Boeing has pledged Rs2.5m (£21,000) as interim compensation per victim’s family, in addition to Rs10m (£85,000) already offered by the Tata Group.
Outside an Ahmedabad hospital, grieving families waited to retrieve the remains of their loved ones amid the country’s worst aviation disaster in a decade.