The relatives of victims of the Air India crash are demanding answers about the world’s deadliest air disaster in a decade, one year on.
The Boeing 787 Dreamline crashed shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025, killing 260 people.
The crash’s only survivor, Vishwashkumar Ramesh, whose brother was killed in the incident, said he lives with “significant psychological scars”, the loss of his brother, and “constant unanswered questions”.
He said that the families of victims were grieving like him, as he urged for “transparency and answers.” “The trauma didn’t end on the day of the disaster,” he said in a statement.
“More than anything, people need honesty, transparency and answers. Nothing will ever change what happened, but families deserve clarity.”
Yet Indian investigators delayed issuing a final report on the crash that was expected on its first anniversary. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau said a final report would be released only after ”all investigative work and required international consultations were completed”.
The GE Aerospace-made engines are at the centre of the probe, after a preliminary report released last year showed the 787’s engine fuel control switches moved from “RUN” to “CUT-OFF” almost at the same time, cutting off fuel supply short after flight take-off.
The final report is based on engine testing in April, Bloomberg said.
Under international rules, a final report is due “if possible” within a year of an accident, but sometimes investigations take longer.
But the release of an interim report has seen opposition, including from the Federation of Indian Pilots Union, which wants to rebut the theory of a pilot suicide that is being explored by the bureau.
“It will cause more speculation and more misunderstanding,” CS Randhawa, the union’s president, told reporters ahead of the anniversary. “We have requested the Indian government and India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) not to come out with any interim report.”
A cockpit recording of dialogue between the two pilots of the Air India 787 before it crashed supported the view that the captain cut the flow of fuel to its engines, according to US officials’ early assessment reported by Reuters last year.
Last year’s preliminary report did not make any safety recommendations to Boeing or GE, indicating no technical issues had been discovered at that time.
But the captain’s father has asked India’s top court to order an independent investigation that takes into account other possible causes for the crash.
Legal action
The plane headed to Gatwick contained 52 British citizens, including Mr Ramesh and his brother.
Mr Ramesh met with Air Accident Investigators in Ahmedabad in March, his representative Sanjiv Patel said.
But his “repeated” requests to meet the chief executive of Air India has not been met.
The crash survivor has to date received £21,500 from Air India to support his wife and five-year-old son – an interim payment provided to all families who lost loved ones in the disaster, Mr Patel said.
But the physical and psychological impact of the crash left him unable to return to work, leaving him and his family to face “significant financial hardship.”
He recently met with executives of Air India and representatives of the Tata Group, the airline’s majority shareholder, Mr Patel. But a request to meet the CEO of the airline has not yet been granted.
Those discussions were constructive and have resulted in some positive progress, although a number of important issues remain under discussion.
Mr Patel said other affected families had also complained of not receiving any direct contact or tailored support from the UK Government.
Mr Ramesh is taking civil action following the crash, with his solicitors saying: “We will be examining every detail of the air accident investigations and expecting all parties involved to act appropriately to any findings of fault, failure or negligence.”
Mohammed Shoeb Iproliya, from Leicester, said his wife Nusratjahan Jethra was 28 when she was killed in the crash.
She rang him from the airport to tell him she would board an earlier flight home than originally planned, because she missed him.
“There is a lot of things you can’t share with anybody. You can share with your wife only. What you felt,” he told the BBC.
“She’s my whole life,” he said.
A spokesperson for Air India said: “Air India remains committed to supporting every individual impacted by the AI171 tragedy with care and compassion.
“While we cannot discuss the specifics of any individual case, representatives from Air India and the Tata Group met with Mr Ramesh and had a constructive and meaningful engagement.
“The discussions provided insight into Mr Ramesh’s needs and concerns, enabling a clearer understanding of how best to support him.
“We remain in close contact with Mr Ramesh and his representatives and are actively working to ensure that appropriate support continues to be extended to him.”