Where is Vishwas Kumar, only survivor of Air India plane crash? What is he doing now? Details will shock you

Many would think of him as one of the luckiest persons alive in the world. But for Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, the sole survivor of the June 12 Air India plane crash, it has been a struggle to get over the monumental tragedy. He is now taking a psychiatrist’s help to find a way of coping with the traumatic experience, his cousin said, PTI reported.

Ahmedabad plane crash: Meet the lone survivor of the Air India Boeing 787-8 crash

The Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on June 12, resulting in the deaths of 260 individuals, including 229 passengers, 12 crew members, and 19 people on the ground.

Vishwas Kumar Ramesh is the sole survivor of the Air India Boeing 787-8 crash that occurred on June 12, 2025. The flight was headed from Ahmedabad to London when it crashed shortly after takeoff. Vishwas survived but is reportedly in trauma and receiving psychiatric treatment.

Sole Air India Plane Crash survivor, Vishwas Kumar, is seeking psychiatric help, cousin says, ‘He doesn’t talk, sleeps…..

Ramesh, a resident of Leicester, UK, was travelling with his brother Ajay on flight AI-171 to London when the incident happened. Vishwas is struggling to cope with the trauma of the plane crash, considered one of the most horrific in Indian aviation history. He was the sole survivor of the ill-fated London-Ahmedabad flight, walking out alive while all others perished.

While speaking to a leading publication, his cousin stated that Vishwas is currently undergoing psychiatric treatment to deal with the emotional aftermath. His cousin stated, “Many people, including our relatives living abroad, call us to inquire about Vishwas’s well-being. But he does not talk to anyone. He is yet to overcome the mental trauma of the crash and the death of his brother.”

“He still wakes up in the middle of the night and finds it difficult to fall asleep again. We took him to a psychiatrist two days ago to find remedy. He has not made any plans yet to return to London because his treatment has just begun,” Sunny added, PTI reported.

Vishwas is presently in a fragile emotional position, dealing with the trauma of the crash. His cousin Sunny stated that he frequently wakes up during the night, remembers the crash, and cannot go back to sleep. He was seated in seat 11A, close to the exit — this is probably why he survived the crash. Sunny also reported that Vishwas doesn’t plan to travel to London anytime soon, as he had only just started psychiatric treatment. “We took him to a psychiatrist two days ago to find remedy. He has not made any plans yet to return to London because his treatment has just begun,” he stated.

Vishwas was discharged from the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital on June 17. On the same day, the mortal remains of his brother Ajay were handed over to the family after a DNA match. Vishwas and Ajay were returning to London by the Air India flight after visiting their family in Diu, a part of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

What did the AAIB preliminary report reveal?

India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on Friday released the preliminary report into the tragic crash of Air India flight AI171. The report outlines a harrowing sequence of events that unfolded within 90 seconds of takeoff, as both engines of the aircraft shut down unexpectedly during the initial climb, leading to a catastrophic loss of thrust and rapid descent.

Flight data recovered from the aircraft’s Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorder (EAFR) stated that the fuel cutoff switches for both engines were inadvertently moved from RUN to CUTOFF, one after the other within a 1-second interval, at an altitude just moments after liftoff. One pilot was heard asking the other, “Why did you cut off?” to which the response was, “I did not. “This uncommanded shutdown triggered the deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), and the aircraft began losing altitude almost immediately, unable to sustain powered flight. According to the AAIB, the pilots re-engaged the fuel switches in an attempt to relight both engines. Engine 1 showed signs of recovering thrust, but Engine 2 failed to stabilise.

Why did you cut off… the last words of pilot

The aircraft, which had briefly reached a speed of 180 knots, was already descending and failed to regain altitude. The final distress call — a “MAYDAY” — was transmitted at 08:09 UTC, just seconds before the aircraft crashed into residential buildings outside the airport perimeter.

In an interview with Doordarshan, he narrated the incident and said that his seat, 11-A, was situated in a part of the plane that had landed on the ground floor of the building, which it had crashed into. Vishwash, who is a British Citizen of Indian origin, then removed his seat belt and came out of the aircraft, adding that his left hand was burned when fire erupted.

Miracle survivor of AI-171 plane crash narrates horrific tale of escaping death

Sharing the horrific experience, he said that all he saw were the bodies of passengers and crew membersVishwash said, “The side where I was sitting wasn’t on the hostel side, it was the ground floor of the hostel. I don’t know about others, but the place I was sitting that portion landed on the ground floor, and there was some space. As soon as my door broke, I saw that there was some space, and then I tried to get out, and I got out. There was a building wall on the opposite side, and the plane had crashed completely on that side, so probably that is why nobody could get out from that side. There was space only where I was. I don’t know how I survived. When the fire broke out, my left hand also got burned. Then I was admitted to the hospital. People here are treating me well. People are very nice here.”

(With Agencies Inputs)

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