Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Who Were The Air India Pilot And Co-Pilot Flying Aircraft Carrying 242 People

A plane crashed near Ahmedabad airport right after its take-off on June 12, 2025. It is termed as the worst-ever aviation tragedy in India. An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner carrying 242 passengers consisting of 10 crew members and 2 pilots met with a horrific crash immediately after its take-off. It was under the command of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal with First Officer Clive Kundar. Read on to know more about them. 

Who is Captain Sumeer Sabharwal and co-pilot Clive Kundar, who was flying an Air India aircraft that crashed?

The aircraft was under the command of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a Line Training Captain with 8,200 hours of flying experience, as stated by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. He was accompanied by the First Officer, Clive Kunder, who was assisting him. He had 1,100 hours of flight experience. 

Air India issues a statement right after the crash

It is disheartening to witness the horrible aircraft crash. Soon after the crash, Air India issued a statement confirming the flight number, which was bound for London Gatwick. It has even set up a dedicated hotline number to provide more information on the crash and passengers. Air India post on X, can be read as:

"Flight AI171, operating Ahmedabad-London Gatwick, was involved in an incident today, 12 June 2025. At this moment, we are ascertaining the details and will share further updates at the earliest on http://airindia.com and on our X handle"

The Air India plane crash

In the afternoon, a video of the aircraft flying low and trying its best to gain altitude surfaced on the internet. In the clip, the plane was seen slamming to the ground and exploding in a massive ball of fire at 1:38 p.m. For those who don't know, the aircraft was also loaded with fuel as it was flying to London, which included a lot of distance. 

It is reported that shortly after the take-off, the pilot had sent a mayday call. After this, they did not respond, despite repeated calls from the air traffic controllers. According to aviation expert Sanjay Lazar, the aircraft was clearly unable to climb. The catastrophic failure to achieve lift happened at a low altitude of 825 feet. 

The visuals showed the wreckage of the plane with thick smoke rising from the site. Soon, two dozen ambulances arrived on the side, and the rescue mission started, which carried the injured people to hospital. Civil Aviation Minister, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu expressed his concern about the matter and prayed for those on the boards. He wrote on X,

"My thoughts and prayers are with all those on board and their families."

Also, it is worth mentioning that the plane was headed to Britain's Gatwick Airport. The police officer revealed that the plane crashed in a civilian area near the airport. The building on which it crashed was a doctors' hostel, and they are trying their best to clear 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the area. The aircraft included 217 adults with 11 children as per Reuters. 169 were Indian nationals, while 53 were Britons, seven Portugese and one Canadian, as reported by Air India.

Our heartfelt condolence to the people and their families involved in the gut-wrenching crash.

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