7 hours ago
4
The sole survivor of the Air India plane crash that killed 241 people in June has said it is a miracle he is still alive, but the death of his brother “took all my happiness”.
Almost four months on from the crash in the Indian city of Ahmedabad, Briton Vishwash Kumar Ramesh said the incident had left him with constant flashbacks.
The 39-year-old said the death of his brother, Ajay, who was on the same flight, meant his family had “lost everything”.
“I lost everything – my happiness. God gave me life but took all my happiness, and from my family,” he told the PA news agency.
“It completely brought down my family … it’s very difficult for me and my family.”
The London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on 12 June, killing everyone on board except Ramesh.
Among those killed were 169 Indian nationals and 52 British nationals, making it one of the deadliest plane crashes in terms of the number of British fatalities. Besides those on board flight AI171, another 19 people died and 67 were seriously injured on the ground.
Ramesh said the crash itself was still too painful to discuss, adding he could not bring himself to speak about his first memory after the incident. His advisers said he still has not spoken about it with close family.
In a statement prepared with the assistance of his advisers, he said he was broken and stays awake at night because of the flashbacks.
He said: “I get flashbacks all the time, I just stay awake, I sleep maybe three to four hours. Yes it’s a miracle I survived, but I lost everything, I lost my brother, I’m broken.”
He told PA: “My family have given me good support. My mother, father and my younger brother totally broke down, like mentally. And also me – mentally, physically.”
after newsletter promotion
He continued: “My uncle, my cousin, my friends, (advisers) Sanjiv, Radd – they have given me good support – they’re always here.
“Mentally and physically – I’m not talking about too much with my family as I’m in my room, alone. I don’t like to talk too much. I’m just sitting on my bed and thinking.
“I lost my brother, 35 years old – every day I’m struggling.”
A preliminary report into the incident from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found both of the plane’s fuel switches moved to the “cut-off” position “immediately” after takeoff, stopping fuel supply to the engine. It remains unclear why this happened.
