The pilot of the Air India flight that crashed last week may have saved thousands of lives with a last-minute heroic decision. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, India, hitting a medical college hostel and killing 270 people.
Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, nearing retirement, and co-pilot Clive Kundar sent a final Mayday message: “No thrust, losing power, unable to lift.” The crash site was near a less populated area, and reports suggest Sabharwal steered the plane away from a nearby large hospital with over 3,000 beds, potentially preventing even greater loss of life.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, with the plane’s black box recently recovered to help provide answers. Indian Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu called the recovery a crucial step in the inquiry.
Rest in peace to all victims of this tragedy.
