Only survivor of Air India crash gives horrifying update 5 months later
The sole survivor of the devastating Air India crash, which happened earlier this year, has issued an update five months after the traumatic event.
On 12 June, Air India Flight 171 crashed into the hostel block of B. J. Medical College less than a minute after takeoff from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport runway in Ahmedabad, India.
The crash claimed the lives of 241 on board, as well as 19 people on the ground. 40-year-old Vishwash Kumar Ramesh from Leicester was the only survivor to escape the wreckage of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.
Ramesh, who was sitting in seat 11A, is understandably still incredibly shaken from the horrific ordeal as he grieves for his brother, Ajaykumar, who had been sitting across the aisle on the plane.
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Ramesh has since spoken with Sophie Ridge on the Mornings with Ridge and Frost programme as he shared the impact of that day.
"It's very painful talking about the plane," he explained softly.
When asked by Ridge if he could speak about what happened on board, the father of one fell silent.
"How is your life now?" Ridge asked, to which Ramesh shared that the crash has left him feeling 'very broke down', adding it's much the same for the rest of his family.
Five months on and he doesn't leave the house, instead sitting alone in his bedroom doing 'nothing'.
"I just think about my brother," Ramesh, who said he still cannot believe he is dead, continued. "For me, he was everything."
He also explained that he is still suffering with physical discomfort too, dealing with knee, shoulder and back pain, as well as burns to his left arm which has resulted in his wife having to help him shower.
Ramesh and his wife live in Leicester with their four-year-old son named Divang.
"I have a four-year-old, so I know what four-year-olds are like," Ridge explained. "They're a handful but they can bring a lot joy as well. How has he been since the tragedy happened?"
Ramesh said that Divang is 'okay' but added: "I'm not talking properly with my son."
"Does he come to your room?" Ridge asked, to which Ramesh shook his head.
Ramesh was joined by Leicester community leader Sanjiv Patel and his adviser and spokesperson Radd Seiger for support as he spoke during the interview
"Sophy… this is an important question that you're asking," Seiger said. "You're a parent, I'm a parent, and we all know that being a parent is a privilege, isn't it? But it takes a lot of energy… you need to be in a good place to be a good parent, to have that from the moment they wake up to the moment they go to bed.
"You need to be in a good place and we can all see… he's [Mr Ramesh] been robbed of that and I think it's just a chore for him to just get through the day, let alone be a husband, be a father."
Seiger and Patel said that the list of what Rmaes needs to get his life back on track is 'endless' but that it starts with 'practical things' such as financial support.
Ramesh and his brother Ajaykumar invested all their savings to launch a fishing business in India, which required them to travel frequently between the UK and India.
Since the crash, the business has ceased operations, leaving Ramesh’s extended family in both countries without any source of income, according to Patel. He described the situation as an 'existential threat' to the family.
Air India has reportedly offered Ramesh a one-off interim payment of £21,500, an advance typically given before the conclusion of a personal injury claim.
A spokesperson for Tata Group, Air India’s parent company, confirmed to Sky News that Ramesh had accepted the payment and that the amount had been transferred. However, Seiger argued that the sum 'doesn’t even touch the sides' of what Ramesh needs while he remains unable to work or leave his home with expenses ranging from his son’s school transport to food, medical care and psychological support.
The families are calling for more than financial compensation, which they say reduces Ramesh to 'a number on a spreadsheet'. Instead, they are urging Air India’s CEO, Campbell Wilson, to meet directly with Ramesh, his family, and other crash victims’ families, to listen to their experiences and 'talk as humans'
"Meet the people. Understand what they’re going through. Relying on bureaucratic machinery to deal with real lives—people suffering real trauma, the pain, the financial consequences—this is their everyday reality. Lives have been destroyed, not just for the immediate families, but for their extended families as well," Patel said.
A spokesperson for Air India told Sky News: "We are deeply conscious of our responsibility to provide Mr Ramesh with support through what must have been an unimaginable period. Care for him - and indeed all families affected by the tragedy - remains our absolute priority.
"Senior leaders from across Tata Group continue to visit families to express their deepest condolences. An offer has been made to Mr Ramesh's representatives to arrange such a meeting, we will continue to reach out and we very much hope to receive a positive response.
"We are keenly aware this continues to be an incredibly difficult time for all affected and continue to offer the support, compassion, and care we can in the circumstances."
Topics: Air India, News, World News, UK News
Rhiannon Ingle