Air India Crash: Identities of pilots, cabin crew released

The identities of the flight crew aboard the ill-fated Air India Flight AI-171, which crashed just moments after takeoff from Ahmedabad, have now been released by local media, offering a sobering glimpse into the lives lost in the devastating tragedy that claimed over 200 lives.

Leading the doomed Boeing 787 Dreamliner was Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a seasoned aviator with over 8,200 flying hours under his belt. Captain Sabharwal, described by colleagues as meticulous and deeply professional, was at the controls during what was meant to be a routine flight to London.

First Officer Clive Kunder, based in Mumbai, served as the co-pilot. A promising young aviator, Kunder had logged 1,100 flying hours and completed his aviation training at the Paris Air Flight School in Florida, USA. His inclusion in the cockpit of the long-haul flight reflected the airline’s confidence in his skill and composure.

In addition to the cockpit crew, the full list of cabin crew members aboard has also been revealed. Among them were:

Nganthoi Sharma Kongbrailatpam

Lamnunthem Singson

Senior crew members included:

Shradha Dhavan

Aparna Mahadik

Saineeta Chakravarti

Deepak Pathak

Maithili Patil

Irfan Shaikh

Roshni Songhare Rajendra

Manisha Thapa

These names now join a growing list of those being mourned by families, colleagues, and citizens around the world as investigations continue into what caused the aircraft to crash into a residential compound just seconds after departure.

Tributes have poured in for the flight team, with fellow aviation professionals and passengers remembering them for their dedication and courage in the skies. Many have described the loss of the Air India crew as a blow not just to the airline, but to the entire aviation community.

As rescue and recovery operations continue, the tragic loss of Captain Sabharwal, First Officer Kunder, and the rest of the crew underline the risks faced by aviation professionals and the fragility of life at 30,000 feet.