The Air India Flight AI 171, the wide-body Dreamliner plane crash at Ahmedabad on Thursday (June 12, 2025) almost mirrors the January 1, 1978 Air India Flight AI 855, named Emperor Ashoka, a Boeing 747-237 B that had crashed into the Arabian Sea soon after take-off from the Mumbai airport 47 years ago.
Like the Flight AI 171, which crashed within minutes after take-off into a residential area near the airport, Flight AI 855 plunged into the sea near the airport, off the coast of Bandra, within 3 km of flying distance at night due to disorientation of the captain soon after instrument failure, killing all the 190 passengers and 23 crew members on board. The flight was headed to Dubai.
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“That was one of Air India’s biggest air disasters and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation [DGCA] took strict action after investigations and safety levels were enhanced substantially,” said Jitender Bhargava, former executive Director, Air India, and an aviation expert.
According to the investigation report, the aircraft, after one minute of take-off, took a right turn after crossing the coastline and soon after turned to left and never gained level. It lost altitude and then nosedived into the sea.
