'Way To Disassociate Bad Memories': AI-171 Becomes AI-159 After Ahmedabad Crash

Last Updated:June 14, 2025, 11:56 IST

The last instance of an airline renumbering a flight was in 2014, following the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which operated on the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing route.

The flight plummeted to the ground minutes after departing from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on June 12. (Image Credit: PTI)

A day after an Air India plane crashed seconds after takeoff from the Ahmedabad airport, killing 241 people on board, the airline has decided not to operate flight number AI 171 and replace it with flight number AI 159, officials familiar with the matter said on Friday.

“The flight from Ahmedabad to Gatwick [London] will be re-numbered to AI 159. The return flight, too, will be changed to AI160," an official said, requesting anonymity. “The change will start to reflect soon," the official said.

This comes after a London-bound flight crashed shortly after takeoff on Thursday afternoon, carrying 242 people, including 12 crew members. According to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who visited the crash site, only one person survived. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college hostel, resulting in significant loss of life. Official casualty figures have not been released yet.

“The idea behind changing the number of a flight is to avoid triggering trauma or bad memories," a former airline official said. “It is also a way to disassociate the route from the tragedy in the minds of passengers and travellers," this person said.

The last instance of an airline renumbering a flight was in 2014, following the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which operated on the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing route. The flight was subsequently renumbered to MH318. MH370 vanished from radar on March 8, 2014, while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with passengers on board.

Lion Air too re-numbered its flight from JT610 to JT618 after the flight, carrying 181 passengers and eight crew members, crashed into the Java Sea on October 29, 2018, 13 minutes after take-off, killing all 189 occupants on board.

Former pilots described the Boeing 787 as one of the safest fleets in operation. “Such accidents are extremely rare to take place. It is difficult to understand the cause of the accident by looking at the visuals out in the public domain," a former pilot said, requesting anonymity.

The aircraft, which took off at 1:38 pm, was carrying nearly a full load of 125,000 litres of fuel. It began a slow descent shortly after takeoff, still in landing gear configuration, before crashing and exploding. According to Flightradar24 data, the twin-engine plane had reached an altitude of 625 feet at a speed of 174 knots.

“An IndiGo flight that was lined up, aborted take-off after its pilot suspected issues with the Air India take off," an official on condition of anonymity said.

“The pilot reportedly heard some unusual noise while taking off before noticing the fire," an official of the Ahmedabad airport said, requesting anonymity.

An Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) official, requesting anonymity, said, “Yesterday was all about rescue efforts. We have begun collecting material evidence today." He, however, did not confirm if the black box was recovered.

Investigating officials appealed for calm and patience, allowing the investigation to uncover the facts. “Various theories are being discussed, but clarity on the sequence of events and the initial cause of the crash will only be determined after analysing the evidence."

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