Air India Ahmedabad air plane crash: Efforts on to recover black box, say officials

A fire officer stands next to the crashed Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, in Ahmedabad, on June 13, 2025. | Photo Credit: Reuters

Efforts are on recover the black box of the Air India flight AI 171 which crashed in Ahmedabad as its analysis will provide vital clues about what triggered the disaster, said police and Fire Brigade officials on Friday (June 13, 2025).

Ahmedabad Fire Brigade officials informed that a team with specialized equipment like metal cutters has been deployed to search the black box in the wreckage at the accident site in Meghaninagar near the airport, where the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft crashed on Thursday afternoon.

"Work is ongoing to find the black box," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 4) Kanan Desai told PTI.

She clarified that no such thing as a digital video recorder of the flight has been found.

Sources said DVR (digital video recorder) of CCTV cameras of BJ Medical College hostel, where the plane crashed, has been taken into custody by police.

A DVR is an electronic device designed to record and store video footage from CCTV cameras.

Fire department officials said they have been asked to assist in locating the black box of the plane.

"Our team is helping forensic and civil aviation experts in retrieving the black box. The team is equipped with specialized tools such as metal cutters," Deputy Chief Fire Officer Dhrumit Gandhi informed.

A black box is a small device that records information about an aircraft during its flight. It helps in investigation of aviation accidents.

The London-bound Air India plane carrying 242 passengers and crew crashed in Meghaninagar minutes after taking off from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 13.39 pm.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft (AI171) could be seen from afar, losing altitude rapidly and crashing in a ball of fire that sent plumes of thick black smoke spiralling up in the air.

Published - June 13, 2025 04:12 pm IST