As flames roared around him and twisted wreckage smoldered, 40-year-old Vishwashkumar Ramesh opened his eyes and realized the unthinkable—he had survived a crash that killed 241 others.
The British national of Indian origin was the sole passenger to walk away alive from Thursday’s catastrophic Air India crash, which occurred just minutes after takeoff from Ahmedabad. Bound for London, the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plummeted shortly after lifting off, making the tragedy one of India’s worst aviation disasters and the first-ever crash involving this model of aircraft since its 2009 introduction.
Speaking from his hospital bed in Ahmedabad, Ramesh recounted the terrifying moments leading up to the crash in an interview with India’s national broadcaster. He said that shortly after the plane began climbing, it appeared to get stuck midair. Green and white lights flashed inside the cabin, and then the aircraft rapidly accelerated—but never gained enough height. Seconds later, it slammed into a building.
Ramesh was seated in seat 11A. His side of the fuselage tore through the lower floor of a nearby structure, creating just enough space for him to escape. As the door broke open, he unfastened his seatbelt and crawled out. “When I opened my eyes, I realized I was alive,” he said, his voice still heavy with disbelief.
Suffering burns on his left hand and visibly shaken, Ramesh staggered away from the wreckage in a daze before being helped by local residents. He was rushed to a government hospital in an ambulance. Dr. Dhaval Gameti, one of the attending physicians, said Ramesh was disoriented with multiple injuries but now appears to be out of danger.
On Friday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the crash site and met with Ramesh at the hospital. “I told Modi what all I had witnessed. He also enquired about my health,” Ramesh said.
Holding his boarding pass even from his hospital bed, Ramesh spoke of the horrors he witnessed—bodies, scattered debris, and the heartbreaking loss of fellow passengers and crew. He had been traveling with his brother, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, whose fate was initially unknown.
In a separate interview, his cousin Ajay Valgi told the BBC that Ramesh managed to call relatives in Leicester shortly after the crash. “He only said that he’s fine, nothing else,” Valgi said. “We’re happy he’s OK, but we’re still upset about the other brother.”
Nayan later spoke to Sky News, revealing that Vishwash called their father moments after surviving. “He video called my dad as he crashed and said, ‘Oh the plane’s crashed. I don’t know where my brother is. I don’t see any other passengers. I don’t know how I’m alive, how I exited the plane,’” he recounted.
As investigators work to determine the cause of the deadly crash, Ramesh’s survival stands as a solitary, miraculous thread in a tragedy that has shaken families across continents.