Boeing breaks silence as UK-bound plane carrying 242 people crashes in first-of-its kind catastrophe

It was announced earlier this morning that an Air India plane carrying over 200 people crashed in a first-of-its kind catastrophe.

Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, director general of India’s directorate of civil aviation, told the Associated Press that the Air India flight was carrying 242 people, including crew, on board.

He said the crash, which involved a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with registration VT-ANB, happened in the Meghani Nagar area at 1.38pm local time (9.08am BST) shortly after takeoff.

Flight tracking website Flightradar24 posted on social media platform X: "We are following reports of a crash of Air India flight #AI171 from Ahmedabad to London.

"We received the last signal from the aircraft at 08:08:51 UTC (shortly before 9.09am BST), just seconds after take off. The aircraft involved is a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with registration VT-ANB."

A Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying over 240 people tragically crashed earlier this morning (12 June) (Sky News)

It added that the signal from the aircraft, which was headed to London Gatwick Airport, was lost 'less than a minute after take off'.

It was soon confirmed by the airline that 169 passengers are Indian nationals, 53 are British, one is Canadian and seven are Portuguese.

Boeing has since broken its silence following the tragic news, which is a first-of-its kind as it is the first time a Boeing 787 aircraft has come down like this.

The model in question first launched 14 years ago and just six weeks ago, the planemaker announced that the model - also known as the Dreamliner - had reached the milestone of carrying 1 billion passengers.

"We are aware of initial reports and are working to gather more information," the official statement says.

Boeing has since broken its silence on the first-of-its-kind catastrophe (SOPA Images / Contributor / Getty Images)

Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Air India, also released a statement shortly after the news broke: "With profound sorrow I confirm that Air India flight, AI 171 operating Ahmedabad London Gatwick was involved in a tragic accident today. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of all those affected by this devastating event."

He continued: "At this moment, our primary focus is on supporting all the affected people and their families. We are doing everything in our power to assist the emergency response teams at the site and to provide all necessary support and care to those impacted."

The statement concluded: "Further updates will be shared as we receive more verified information.

"An emergency centre has been activated and support team have been set up for families."