Viswashkumar Ramesh miraculously survived the AI 171 Dreamliner crash near Ahmedabad, India’s deadliest single-aircraft disaster. He recalls a violent jolt and the pilot’s distress call before leaping from the disintegrating plane.
NEW DELHI: Viswashkumar Ramesh doesn’t remember much, just a loud noise, the pilot’s voice shouting “Mayday”, and a rush of heat as the aircraft tore apart after the crash.As per his cousin, he jumped without thinking. When he opened his eyes, he was outside, covered in blood, shouting for help. His brother, seated across the aisle in 11J, didn’t make it.Also read: ‘Don’t Know How I Survived’: Vishwaskumar Ramesh, Lone Survivor In Air India Crash, Says He Crawled Out Of Shattered Fuselage Just In TimeSeat 11A turned out to be his lifeline on AI 171, the London-bound Dreamliner that crashed minutes after takeoff from Ahmedabad on Thursday, killing nearly everyone on board.
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Viswash, a 40-year-old UK-based businessman from Diu, is the only confirmed survivor. The British national now lies in bed 11 of ward B7 at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital — dazed, bruised, and asking the one question no one has answered: “Where is my brother?” From behind a sealed ward, guarded by Gujarat ATS and the crime branch, Viswash’s story is a haunting thread of survival from India’s deadliest single-aircraft crash.Also read: Who is Viswashkumar Ramesh? Lone survivor of Ahmedabad plan crashHe recalls only fragments: a violent jolt, the pilot’s trembling voice, and a blind leap through smoke and wreckage. “Nothing more,” he told his cousin.
Outside, video clips captured him stumbling barefoot through twisted debris, shouting, “Plane fatyo che! (The plane has exploded!).” Just hours earlier, the brothers from Diu had waved goodbye to family, bound for London, where they’d built a life over 15 years.Also read: 241 of 242 on board die in worst single plane crash in India, toll on ground could riseIndia’s deadliest single-aircraft crash claimed at least 245 lives, including Gujarat’s former CM Vijay Rupani and dozens on the ground. The ill-fated Boeing 787-8 slammed into the residential quarters and mess hall of B J Medical College and Civil Hospital around 3km from the end of the runway, killing doctors, students, and passengers in seconds. Rescue teams retrieved over 290 body bags in what became India’s first Dreamliner crash and the worst civil aviation tragedy since the 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision.
‘Plane fatyo che!’
While Viswashkumar Ramesh fights for his life in Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, more fragments of his escape and the hours that followed the crash are surfacing through his family and friends. Ayub Mansuri, a close family friend who had driven the brothers to the airport that morning, said Viswashkumar’s father in London broke the news of the crash. “I managed to speak to Viswash three times after the crash,” Ayub said. “Then his phone went dead. I hired an auto and somehow crossed roadblocks to reach the hospital. He had head injuries and bruises.” Viswash’s cousin Dhirendra recalled their last moments together. “On Wednesday night, we were all in Patelwadi,” he said. “Viswash told me, ‘I don’t know when we’ll meet next.’” Dhirendra also added that Viswash doesn’t remember how he got out — “He just jumped through a door and blacked out.” Officials sealed off his ward by 2.30pm on Thursday, soon after he was identified as the lone survivor. Since then, Gujarat ATS and Ahmedabad crime branch have restricted access to him. The Ramesh brothers were among 15 passengers from Diu’s Bucharwada and Vanakbara, all long-time London residents managing a garment business in the UK and a fishing venture in Diu. Diu ADM Vivek Kumar confirmed all 15 have been identified. “Only one has survived. A team from the administration has left for Ahmedabad,” he said.
