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The Indian Airlines flight that crashed in October 1988 carried 135 passengers, of whom two miraculously survived.
Ambulances lined up as bodies of Air India plane crash victims are shifted to cold storage from the Civil Hospital, in Ahmedabad, Friday, June 13, 2025. (Image: PTI)
For Dr Hasmukh Patel, present at the Civil Hospital mortuary on Thursday and Friday, the scene evoked memories of a similar crash almost 30 years prior, when a landing accident at Ahmedabad airport resulted in 133 fatalities.
The Indian Airlines flight carried 135 passengers, of whom two miraculously survived. This echoes the remarkable escape of Viswashkumar Ramesh in the recent Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner crash.
“I was a second-year intern at Civil Hospital when the Ahmedabad plane crash occurred in 1988. The situation in the mortuary then was quite similar. However, today we are using DNA sampling to identify the deceased,” said Dr Hasmukh Patel, MLA for Ahmedabad.
“The DNA identification process is complex, but we must conduct it meticulously to return the bodies to their families,” added Patel.
He is currently volunteering at the same hospital, guiding people in the aftermath of the tragedy. He was observed assisting government ministers and managing DNA lab operations.
While the recent crash is considered among the worst aviation tragedies in history, on October 19, 1988, Indian Airlines Flight 113, a Boeing 737, had tragically crashed near Ahmedabad, Gujarat, resulting in the loss of 133 lives, with only two survivors. The aircraft went down while attempting to land amid poor visibility conditions, which severely hampered the pilots’ ability to navigate safely.
The 1988 crash saw only two survivors. CK Patel, a 42-year-old US-based NRI businessman, was seated near the front of the aircraft. He survived with multiple injuries, including burns and fractures. In interviews following the crash, Patel described waking up amid flames and wreckage and managing to crawl out before the fire intensified. His account provided key insights into the sequence of events inside the aircraft after the crash.
Suraj Prasad, an Indian national, was the only other passenger who survived. His injuries were severe, and he was hospitalised for an extended period. Like Patel, Prasad’s survival was considered miraculous, as both had been seated in sections of the aircraft that did not completely disintegrate on impact.
Last week, on June 12, 2025, Air India Flight AI-171 enroute from Ahmedabad to London crashed shortly after take-off, leaving 241 out of 242 people on board dead. Several people died on the ground as well as the plane crashed on BJ Medical College hostel mess where people were present.
The survivor, Vishwashkumar Ramesh, a 40‑year‑old British‑Indian seated in 11A spoke about how he regained consciousness amid wreckage and bodies around him, unbuckled his seatbelt, and escaped through an emergency exit before fleeing the flaming cabin.
Yesha Kotak, Special Correspondent, CNN-News18, specialises in crime, court and investigative reporting. She describes herself as a print reporter in TV. With six years of experience in journalism, Yesha has ea…Read More
Yesha Kotak, Special Correspondent, CNN-News18, specialises in crime, court and investigative reporting. She describes herself as a print reporter in TV. With six years of experience in journalism, Yesha has ea… Read More
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