Air India Crash: Vishwas Kumar Survives, Brother Among the Deceased

Air India Crash: The image of Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, battered and bruised, making his way away from the wreckage of the Air India flight that tragically went down just moments after taking off in Ahmedabad on Thursday, has become a powerful symbol of India’s most devastating aviation disaster in a decade.

At his home in Leicester, central England, however, Ramesh’s family oscillated between joy at his escape and grief at the loss of his brother. “We are happy Viswash has been saved, but on the other hand, we are just heartbroken about Ajay,” Hiren Kantilal, Ramesh’s cousin, said.

“Luckily, the portion of the plane where I was seated fell on the ground floor of the hostel premises after the plane crash-landed. When I saw that the door of the plane was broken, I told myself I can try and get out,” said Ramesh.

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Ramesh was on flight 11A, and Ajay was on the same flight, sitting on 11J. According to their younger brother Nayan, the two were returning home from a trip to India.

The UK Foreign Office has been in contact with Ramesh to offer consular support, according to a spokesperson from Downing Street.

The Air India flight carried 51 other British nationals in addition to Ramesh and Ajay. Vibhooti Patel, 28, and Hardik Avaiya, 27, have been named as the victims.

Leicester natives Avaiya and Patel had travelled to India to celebrate their engagement.

Arjun Patoliya, who went to India to fulfil his wife’s dying wish to immerse her ashes in Narmada, was among the victims. “Her wish was that the ashes must be submerged in Narmada River,” said a member of the Indian Gujarati community who did not wish to be identified.

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Patoliya is survived by his two daughters, aged four and eight. The two girls were in London at the time of the crash.

In Wellingborough, an English town 65 miles from London, mayor Raj Mishra condoled the death of Raxa Modha, 55, who accompanied her husband Kishor to India. “Kishor wanted to be in his hometown in his final days. He died on April 26, and Raxa, along with her daughter-in-law and grandson, was returning to UK,” a person aware of the matter said.

The Indian High Commission in London has been receiving several queries from family members and relatives of those affected regarding visas to India. “We are facilitating it all at the high commission,” said an official.

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