Air India 171 families press for answers a year after Ahmedabad crash
Relatives of people killed in the June 2025 crash say they still lack accountability, compensation and closure as the final probe remains pending.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
3 min read
Families bereaved by the Air India Flight 171 disaster say they are still waiting for accountability one year after the London-bound jet crashed in Ahmedabad. Al Jazeera reported that the June 12, 2025, crash killed 259 people, including 241 on the aircraft and 18 on the ground.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner went down shortly after takeoff near Meghani Nagar, a residential area beside Ahmedabad’s airport, according to Al Jazeera. The aircraft hit near a medical college hostel, and debris and fire reached nearby shops and homes.
Sita Patni, who ran a small tea stall near the hostel, told Al Jazeera that her 14-year-old son, Aakash, had decided to sleep at the stall that afternoon instead of going home. She said an explosion threw her away from the shop, and she ran toward the flames looking for him, suffering burns to her hand, waist and legs.
Patni said she was initially told Aakash had been taken to hospital and was recovering. Al Jazeera reported that she learned 20 days later that he had died on the day of the crash, after a burning wing fell on the stall where he had been sleeping.
Families question compensation and accountability
About 150km from Ahmedabad, Salim Patel told Al Jazeera his 25-year-old son, Sahil, had won a place in the United Kingdom’s India Young Professionals Scheme a day before the crash. The programme had selected him by ballot for a two-year work visa, Patel said.
Sahil was among the passengers on Flight 171. Patel told Al Jazeera he believes the pilot was not at fault and that the aircraft was defective. He called for severe punishment for those responsible.
Al Jazeera reported that a preliminary report by Indian aviation authorities issued weeks after the crash pointed toward the pilot, but the final investigation has not been completed. Patel told the broadcaster that Air India and Tata officials visited his family after Sahil’s death and discussed compensation, but asked for proof that Sahil was salaried and later for photographs showing him working in an office.
Al Jazeera said Air India had not responded to its request for comment on Patel’s allegations. Patel’s family has contacted a United States-based law firm, and Al Jazeera reported that at least 120 families have approached the same firm.
A widower faces immigration pressure
In London, Muhammad Shethwala, 28, told Al Jazeera he lost his wife, Sadika Tapeliwala, and their daughter, Fatima, in the crash. They had travelled to India for a relative’s wedding and were returning to London when the plane went down.
Shethwala said he flew to Ahmedabad after hearing the news and waited nine days at the hospital where victims had been taken. He told Al Jazeera that hospital authorities later returned Sadika’s gold bangle and Fatima’s gold earring wrapped in the child’s pink dress.
Al Jazeera reported that Shethwala returned to the United Kingdom in July 2025 and received a deportation order in January 2026. He had been living in the UK as a dependent on Sadika’s visa after she completed an MBA and began work as a consultant in London, according to the report.
Shethwala has challenged the order and has spent nearly $15,000 on legal proceedings, Al Jazeera reported. He said he asked Air India for help with those costs but had not received support; the airline had not responded to Al Jazeera’s questions about his case at publication time.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.