Donald Trump breaks silence on 'horrific' Air India plane crash carrying over 200 people
President Donald Trump has spoken out about the 'horrific' Air India plane crash that took place earlier this morning (12 June).
Of the 242 on board, Air India said there were '169 Indians, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese and one Canadian', with police in India, later releasing an official statement suggesting there were 'no survivors' on board the plane following the crash.
"It appears there are no survivors in the plane crash," Commissioner G.S. Malik told the Associated Press, adding that the fact the plane collided with a residential area means 'some locals would have also died'.
"Exact figures on casualties are being ascertained." Mailk continued. However, since then, it has since been confirmed that one British man had survived the crash.
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Speaking at the White House, Trump has since said he has offered 'anything we can do' to Indian authorities after the 'horrific crash'.
"Nobody had any idea what happened," the 78-year-old Republican said. "It looks like it was flying just fine."
He also said he believed it was 'one of the most worst crashes in aviation history'.
Trump was speaking at an event in the East Room of the White House to bar California from implementing the state's electric vehicle mandate.
The plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was en route to Gatwick Airport in London from Ahmedabad and was scheduled to depart at 09:50 UK time, with an arrival time of 18:25.
It was later revealed that 'the last signal' traffic control officers received from the aircraft 'was at 08:08:51 UTC, just seconds after take-off'.
According to the BBC, around 204 bodies have been recovered from the wreck site, police said, however, it is unknown if they are all from the plane, with a reporter from New Delhi TV telling Sky News that she'd 'seen some people being taken to hospital'.
The survivor was later identified as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who has since spoken to the Hindustan Times about the moment the plane went down, claiming to have heard a 'loud noise' around 30 seconds after takeoff.
"It all happened so quickly," he said, revealing he'd sustained 'impact injuries' on his chest, eyes and feet.
"When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran," he continued. "There were pieces of the plane all around me.
"Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital."
Gatwick Airport and Boeing have both since issued statements following the crash, with Gatwick writing in part on social media: "We can confirm flight AI171 that was involved in an accident on departure from Ahmedabad Airport today (12 June) was due to land at London Gatwick at 18:25 BST.
"The Boeing 787-8 aircraft had 242 passengers and crew members on board."
Meanwhile, Boeing said: "We are aware of initial reports and are working to gather more information."
Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Air India, also released a statement: "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."
Topics: US News, News, World News, Donald Trump, Politics, Air India
Rhiannon Ingle