Search continues for woman and child missing after Air India flight crash at B.J. Medical College

Air India Ahmedabad – London flight crash in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on Thursday June 12, 2025.
| Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI

Twenty-four hours after one of the worst aviation disasters in recent memory, Ravi Thakor stood outside BJ Medical College in Ahmedabad, visibly distressed as he continued his search for his mother and toddler daughter. Both were inside the hostel mess into which Air India’s Ahmedabad–London flight crashed minutes after take-off on Thursday, killing all but one on board.

At least 265 persons were killed in the incident, including 241 passengers on the aircraft and several individuals on the ground.

“My mother, wife and I work at the B.J. Medical College mess. Junior doctors come here to have their lunch, while food for senior doctors is packed and taken to the civil hospital as part of a tiffin service. At 1 a.m. on Thursday, we packed food and went to the hospital, while my mother and my daughter were in the mess,” Mr. Thakor told reporters on Friday.

Since he, his father, and wife were engaged in the delivery of the tiffin service at the time, the toddler was left in the care of her grandmother, who was cooking at the mess.

“At the time of the crash, my mother Sarla and daughter Aadya were in the mess. It has been 24 hours but I have not got any clue about what has happened to them. I have gone through the lists provided by authorities and have searched for them in civil and private hospitals all through the night,” Mr. Thakor said, frustration evident in his tone.

He added that all the missing students had been accounted for and the bodies identified. “Only my mother and daughter are untraceable. The guards in the mess are not letting anyone in. I think my mother and daughter may have gone to the ground floor using the stairs. All we want authorities to do is allow us to look around for our satisfaction,” he said.

Police earlier stated that among those killed on the ground were four MBBS students and a doctor’s wife. Several students were reportedly injured by parts of the aircraft that struck the dining hall of the multi-storey hostel building during lunch hours.

Meena Mistry, a cook at the mess, said she and others were preparing rotis when the aircraft crashed.

“We first thought it was a cylinder explosion, but when a massive fireball was spotted, we knew it was something far bigger and sinister. We just rushed out to save our lives, leaving behind keys, phones, etc. My two-wheeler was gutted. It had suddenly gone fully dark. When we came down the stairs, we saw the aircraft turning into a ball of fire,” she recounted.

Neemaben Nigam, another cook, also initially believed it to be a gas cylinder blast. “We have been cooking for doctors and students for 30 years. We are a team of 15 persons. After we saw flames, we just ran without looking back,” she said.