Mangaluru-origin pilot among crew killed in Air India crash near Ahmedabad
Ahmedabad, June 12: First Officer Clive Kunder, who hails from Mangaluru and was a resident of Mumbai, was among the crew members aboard the Air India flight AI 171 that tragically crashed in a residential area near Meghaninagar in Ahmedabad on Thursday afternoon, shortly after take-off.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner had departed from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1:38 PM en route to London. Just about five minutes into the flight, the aircraft went down, leading to a devastating crash that claimed at least 133 lives. The flight was carrying 232 passengers—including two infants—and 12 crew members, making a total of 242 people on board.
Clive Kunder had completed his pilot training at Paris Air Inc. and had clocked around 1,100 hours of flying experience. He was assisting Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a Line Training Captain with over 8,200 hours of flight experience. Both were in the cockpit when the aircraft encountered trouble and crashed.
There were unconfirmed reports suggesting that former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was also on the passenger manifest, reportedly listed as passenger number 12. However, authorities are yet to confirm his presence on board.
Following the crash, flames engulfed the aircraft wreckage, with thick black smoke visible from several kilometres away. Emergency services, including the fire department, responded promptly. Fire Officer Jayesh Khadia confirmed that fire tenders were dispatched immediately to control the blaze and assist in rescue operations.
Senior cabin crew on duty included Shradha Dhavan and Aparna Mahadik. Other crew members identified were Saineeta Chakravarti, Nganthoi Kongbrailatpam Sharma, Deepak Pathak, Maithili Patil, Irfan Shaikh, Lamnunthem Singson, Roshni Songhare Rajendra, and Manisha Thapa.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has deployed a dedicated investigation team to probe the incident. The team includes the Director of Airworthiness, Assistant Director of Airworthiness, and a Flight Operations Inspector—who were already in Ahmedabad at the time of the incident.
Meanwhile, operations at the Ahmedabad airport have been suspended until further notice. "All flight operations at SVPIA are temporarily suspended," an airport spokesperson said.
The exact cause of the crash remains unknown. Rescue and recovery operations continue at the crash site, as authorities work to identify victims and offer support to grieving families.
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Rupee falls 9 paise to all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): Rupee depreciated 9 paise to an all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade on Monday, weighed down by uncertainty over an India-US trade deal and persistent foreign fund outflows.
Forex traders said rupee is trading with a negative bias as investors are in wait and watch mode and awaiting cues from the India-US trade deal front.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.53 against the US dollar, then fell further to an all-time intraday low of 90.58 against the greenback, registering a fall of 9 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee had slipped 17 paise to close at an all-time low of 90.49 against the American currency.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.05 per cent lower at 98.35.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.52 per cent at USD 61.44 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex was trading 298.86 points lower at 84,968.80, while the Nifty was down 121.40 points at 25,925.55.
Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth Rs 1,114.22 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
"FPIs continue to be in selling mode in equity and debt while RBI has been selling dollars to fund their long positions," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
