Video: Air India plane crash's lone survivor breaks down at brother's funeral

Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, the only known survivor of the horrific Air India plane crash on June 12, was travelling from Ahmedabad with his brother Ajay Kumar Ramesh. While Vishwash, who was seated near an emergency exit of the London-bound flight, managed to jump out, his brother was among the 241 passengers that did not survive.

Ajay’s funeral was held today in Diu, an Indian union territory. Heart-rending videos on social media show Ramesh at the funeral, carrying his brother's remains on his shoulders to the cremation ground. Vishwash is a British national — a native of Diu who is settled in the UK. The brothers had flown down to India to visit their family in Diu.

Recommended For You

Fritz overpowers Musetti to start with a win at ATP Finals

BRIDGE Alliance launched to shape future-ready content ecosystem

CentFX strengthens market leadership with major win at Forex Expo Dubai 2025

Video: Turkish military plane with 20 on board crashes in Georgia; casualties feared

Bangladesh on high alert ahead of court fixing verdict date in case against Sheikh Hasina

 

Vishwash, who had sustained burn wounds from the crash, was discharged from the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital late on Tuesday night, and is still recovering from injuries, as seen in the funeral videos.

'Can't believe how I survived'

Speaking from his hospital bed, the 40-year-old had told Indian media that he was travelling to Britain with his brother after visiting family in India.

"When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital," Viswashkumar told the Hindustan Times.

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.

"Everything happened in front of me, and even I couldn't believe how I managed to come out alive from that," Ramesh said from his hospital bed on Friday, speaking in Hindi to national broadcaster DD News.

"Within a minute after takeoff, suddenly... it felt like something got stuck... I realised something had happened, and then suddenly the plane's green and white lights turned on," Ramesh said.

"After that, the plane seemed to speed up, heading straight towards what turned out to be a hostel of a hospital. Everything was visible in front of my eyes when the crash happened."

Ramesh, aged 40, is from the British city of Leicester, according to Britain's Press Association news agency, which spoke with his family at home.

"Initially, I too thought that I was about to die, but then I opened my eyes and realised that I was still alive," he said.

"I saw the air hostess and aunties and uncles all in front of me," he said, his voice trailing off in emotion, using a term of respect used in India for older people.

"I unfastened my seatbelt and tried to escape, and I did," he said. 

"I think the side I was on was not facing the hostel," he added. "Where I landed was closer to the ground and there was space too – and when my door broke -- I saw that there was space, and I thought I could try to slip out."

"My left hand got slightly burnt due to the fire, but an ambulance brought me to the hospital," he said. "The people here are taking good care of me."

Seat 11A of the aircraft

Social media footage shown on Indian news channels showed Ramesh in a bloodstained white t-shirt and dark pants limping on a street and being helped by a medic.

A photo of his boarding pass shown online by the Hindustan Times showed that he was seated in seat 11A of the plane bound for Gatwick Airport.

His brother Ajay had been seated in a different row on the plane and asked for help to find him.

"He was near the emergency exit and managed to escape by jumping out the emergency door," said Vidhi Chaudhary, a senior police officer in Ahmedabad.

On June 12, the Air India aircraft came down in a residential area, crashing onto a medical college hostel outside the airport during lunch hour, in the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade. More than 290 people were killed in the crash. The dead included some on the ground.

(With inputs from agencies)

• India

Bahni Bandyopadhyay

bahni@khaleejtimes.com