File Photo of officials next to the crashed Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, in Ahmedabad, India, June 13, 2025
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Air India has said it is following industry practices in accident compensation process after being accused of coercion by the families of Ahmedabad air crash victims. Air India said families are not being pressurised to accept its compensation offer in a stipulated time frame while defending its actions. The airline gave this justification in a letter to Radhika Mishra, daughter of former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani who died in the Boeing 787 accident in Ahmedabad last June. The aircraft, bound for London, crashed shortly after take off, resulting in the death of 241 persons, including passengers and crew members. In a complaint to Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, Mishra said families are being asked to waive their right to pursue claims against the airline and third parties to avail final compensation from the airline. Seeking transparency, Mishra said accident investigation is still not complete, and families of victims are still waiting for answers. Usual ApproachIn its response to Mishra, Air India said it is following standard industry practice used in compensation process. “The wording in the receipt, discharge and indemnity document mirrors the usual approach commonly taken by airlines, both internationally and in India, in such circumstances,” said the airline. “Air India has no interest whatsoever in shielding any third parties from their legal liability. However, in such accidents, where passengers or their families seek compensation directly from third parties such as equipment manufacturers, these third parties often pursue claims against the airline. As such, the reason for the broad wording is only to ensure that settlements of final compensation are indeed final, and to protect Air India from receiving any direct claims [from other family members] or indirect claims [from equipment manufacturers, suppliers] in the future, despite families having entered into a final settlement with Air India,” it said. Boeing SuedAir India has been dragged to courts in the UK over the air crash. Plane maker Boeing has been sued by the family members of crash victims. A final investigation report on what caused the accident is still awaited.Air India has said there is absolutely no deadline or pressure on any family or individual to accept our offer within a set timeframe. “Families are entirely free to wait until the investigation report has been released, as some have chosen to do,” it said. An interim compensation of ₹25 lakh has been paid to 96 per cent of the families. The remaining cases are primarily those where documentation is incomplete or where there are ongoing family disputes, said Air India.Published on June 10, 2026
