A "Mayday" distress call was issued by Air India's AI 171 flight, minutes before it crashed after taking off from Gujarat's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday.

Everything We Know about the Ahmedabad Plane Crash

According to DGCA, the flight, a Boeing 787, took off from the airport's runway 23 at 1.39 pm for London Gatwick Airport. It had 242 people on board - two pilots, 10 cabin crew members, and 230 passengers.

Aviation expert Sanjay Lazar said that the catastrophic failure to achieve lift happened at a very low altitude of 825 feet. The aircraft was piloted by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal with 8,200 hours of experience and first officer Clive Kundar with 1,100 hours of experience, the DGCA said.

A 17-second video showed the aircraft crashing into a residential area. Visuals also showed thick black smoke rising into the sky from the airport.

Here is the video of #Ahmedabad plane crash pic.twitter.com/PzfatXexwj
— किरण कारंजेकर (@KSKvoice) June 12, 2025

At least two dozen ambulances rushed to the spot. The police have also diverted traffic from the area.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said he is personally monitoring the situation and has directed all aviation and emergency response agencies to initiate swift and coordinated action.

In a statement, Air India said that of the total passengers, 169 are Indians, 53 are British nationals, one Canadian, and seven Portuguese nationals.

"The injured are being taken to the nearest hospitals. We have also set up a dedicated passenger hotline number, 1800 5691 444, to provide more information. Air India is giving its full cooperation to the authorities investigating this incident."

Air India confirms that flight AI171, from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, was involved in an accident today after take-off.

The flight, which departed from Ahmedabad at 1338 hrs, was carrying 242 passengers and crew members on board the Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Of these, 169 are…
— Air India (@airindia) June 12, 2025

What is a Mayday Call?

A "Mayday" call is an internationally recognized distress signal used primarily in aviation and maritime communications to indicate that a vessel or aircraft is in grave danger and requires immediate assistance. It is the highest level of emergency radio communication.

The term "Mayday" has an interesting origin. It was coined in 1923 by Frederick Stanley Mockford, a senior radio officer at Croydon Airport in London. At the time, much of the air traffic from Croydon was to and from Le Bourget Airport in Paris.

Mockford was tasked with finding a distress word that would be easily understood by all pilots and ground staff, regardless of their native language, and that wouldn't be confused with other radio chatter. He chose "Mayday" because it sounds equivalent to the French phrase "m'aider," which means "help me." It was formally adopted as an international distress signal in 1927, alongside the Morse code signal "SOS."

A Mayday call is reserved for situations that pose a direct and immediate threat to life or the continued viability of the aircraft or vessel. For example, situations warranting a Mayday include engine failure (especially multiple engines), Onboard fire, Loss of control of the aircraft/vessel, Severe structural damage, Imminent risk of crashing or sinking, or any situation where the safety of those on board is in grave and imminent danger.

Procedure calls for the mayday distress signal to be said three times in a row — Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! — so that it won't be mistaken for another word or phrase that sounds similar under noisy conditions. A typical distress call will start with mayday repeated three times, followed by all the relevant information that potential rescuers would need, including type and identity of craft involved, nature of the emergency, location or last known location, current weather, fuel remaining, what type of help is needed and number of people in danger.

When a Mayday call is issued, it takes absolute priority over all other radio communications on that frequency. All non-essential radio traffic must cease, and air traffic control (ATC) or maritime rescue coordination centers immediately prioritize that call. They will acknowledge the Mayday, attempt to gather more information, and initiate emergency protocols, dispatching rescue services (fire, medical, security, search and rescue) to the reported location.

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