Gambiaj.com – (Ahmedabad, India) – More than 200 people were killed Thursday when an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner, en route to London, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, India, in what has become the deadliest air disaster in the world in over a decade.

The aircraft, carrying 242 people, including 217 adults, 11 children, and two infants, plunged into a residential area and crashed onto the dining hall of a medical college hostel near B.J. Medical College. The flight was bound for Gatwick Airport near London.

Authorities have so far recovered 204 bodies, according to city police chief G.S. Malik, with no reports of survivors. The final death toll is expected to include both passengers and residents on the ground. Witness accounts and local media suggest many medical students at the hostel may also be among the dead.

Footage from the scene showed flames engulfing the crash site, thick black smoke rising over the neighborhood, and parts of the plane—including its tail—embedded in the building’s structure. Several people were seen being evacuated on stretchers.

The crash occurred just minutes after takeoff from runway 23 at 1:39 p.m. local time. The aircraft issued a “Mayday” distress signal shortly after departure but lost contact moments later. Flight-tracking service Flightradar24 reported receiving the final signal from the aircraft seconds after it became airborne.

Aviation experts are scrutinizing early footage of the plane with its landing gear still down—an unusual sign at that stage of flight. “If you didn’t know what was happening, you would think that plane was on approach to a runway,” said U.S. aerospace safety consultant Anthony Brickhouse.

Thursday’s incident marks the first crash involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since the aircraft entered commercial service in 2011. The specific jet that crashed had been in service since 2014.

British authorities confirmed that 53 of the passengers were UK nationals. Other passengers included 169 Indian citizens, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian.

The UK Foreign Office is working with Indian officials to establish the facts and assist affected families. Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the scenes as “devastating,” while King Charles expressed shock and grief in a public message.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a native of Gujarat state where the crash occurred, said the tragedy was “heartbreaking beyond words.” He has instructed the aviation ministry to extend full support to rescue operations. The Indian government is collecting DNA samples from relatives to help identify victims.

Ahmedabad Airport, which temporarily suspended operations, has since resumed limited flights. The airport is operated by the Adani Group, whose chairman, Gautam Adani, said his team was working closely with authorities to support rescue and relief efforts.

Boeing said it was aware of the crash and is working to gather more information. GE Aerospace, the engine manufacturer, will send a team to assist with analysis of cockpit data, according to Indian broadcaster CNBC TV18.

The last fatal crash in India occurred in 2020, involving an Air India Express plane that overshot a runway in Kozhikode. Air India, formerly state-owned, was taken over by the Tata Group in 2022 and merged with Vistara in 2024.

As rescue and recovery efforts continue, authorities are working to secure the crash site and determine the cause of the disaster. A full investigation is expected in the coming days.