Shillong, June 12: There is shock, grief, and unbearable silence at the residence of 22-year-old Kongbrailatpam Nganthoi Sharma in Awang Leikei, Thoubal district. Nganthoi, a young cabin crew member with Air India, was among the 242 people on board Flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that crashed shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad en route to London Gatwick on Wednesday afternoon, killing almost all on board.
Another young life lost in the crash was Lamnunthem Singson, a 24-year-old cabin crew member from Churachandpur district, also in Manipur.
A second-semester student of the College of Commerce in Imphal, Nganthoi, was selected as cabin crew during a campus recruitment drive in April 2023. It was her first attempt—and she succeeded, fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming an air hostess.
Her father, K. Nandeshkumar, and mother are in deep trauma as they await official confirmation, though the flight manifest already includes Nganthoi’s name. “Her phone is still ringing,” says the family. “Her social media accounts show her as online… we’re just waiting for something—anything—that says she’s alive.”
Nganthoi has three siblings. Her elder sister, Gitanjali, speaking through tears, recalled her determination and joy when she got the job.
“Nganthoi is the second. We’re three sisters. She gave her interview in the last week of February 2023 and joined Air India in April. After completing her Class 12, she joined DM College and cleared her first semester. It was her dream to fly. She told me, ‘I’ll try for cabin crew’—and she made it in her first attempt,” Gitanjali said.
Due to the ongoing internet ban in parts of Manipur, the family couldn’t video chat with her regularly. Still, she kept in touch.
“She messaged me while I was at school, saying she would be flying to London and would be unreachable. She said she’d return on June 15. I wished her a safe flight,” Gitanjali added, her voice trembling.
“Then we got a call from an aunt who said she saw news of an Air India flight crashing in Ahmedabad. I told her Nganthoi had said she was flying to London. That’s how we began to fear the worst.”
The Crash: What Happened
Flight AI171 took off at 1:39 PM IST. Barely minutes into the journey, the aircraft failed to gain sufficient altitude and spiralled down over Naroda, an industrial area on the city’s fringe.
A massive fireball followed the impact, with wreckage spread across a wide area. Eyewitness videos showed the plane descending erratically, possibly with one engine malfunctioning. The aircraft also hit the hostel at B J Medical College, injuring many students.
The plane exploded on impact, setting off a massive fire that emergency responders battled for hours.
Officials confirmed that both the Flight Data Recorder and Cockpit Voice Recorder have been recovered and sent for analysis. Preliminary accounts suggest possible engine trouble, though officials caution against speculation.
Air India has dispatched a crisis response team and set up a helpline (1-800-569-1444) for families of those on board.
Former CM of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani and a senior BJP leader also died in the crash. Forty-year-old Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a British national, is reported to have survived the Air India crash.
Investigation will take time, but anything we can do now, we are doing,” said Air India CEO and Managing Director Campbell Wilson, hours after one of India’s worst aviation disasters unfolded in Ahmedabad.
This is a difficult day for all of us at Air India,” Wilson said. “Our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of our passengers, crew members, their families, and loved ones.”
He confirmed the aircraft was carrying 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian national. Injured passengers—some critically burned—were taken to nearby hospitals, including B J Medical College, where emergency services struggled to cope with the scale of the tragedy.
Air India has dispatched a special team of caregivers to Ahmedabad to assist affected families, and a 24/7 helpline—1-800-569-1444—has been activated.
“Please know that we will continue to share accurate and timely information as soon as we can,” Wilson added. “We owe that to everyone involved.”
In a separate statement, Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran expressed profound grief and solidarity with those affected.
“No words can adequately express the grief we feel at this moment,” he said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families who have lost their loved ones, and with those who have been injured.”
Tata Group, which owns Air India, announced an ex gratia compensation of ₹1 crore to the families of each deceased victim. The group will also bear the medical expenses of the injured and provide support to rebuild the hostel at B J Medical College, where several victims were treated.
“We remain steadfast in standing with the affected families and communities during this unimaginable time,” Chandrasekaran stated.
Leaders from India, including the Prime Minister and the President and from throughout the world have expressed condolences on the loss of lives in the crash.
Also Read: Air India Dreamliner crashes after takeoff in Ahmedabad, 242 onboard
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