One Year After the Air India Crash, the Only Survivor From Seat 11A Is Still Searching for Answers

Exactly one year after the deadly Air India aviation disaster that killed 260 people, the only survivor among the plane’s passengers is opening up about the emotional and financial toll he has continued to pay since that tragic day. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a 39-year-old British-Indian citizen, says that although he survived the crash, his life has not returned to normal, and he is still waiting for answers about the circumstances of the disaster in which he also lost his brother.

The disaster took place on June 12, 2025, when an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner took off from the city of Ahmedabad in western India on its way to London. Shortly after takeoff, the plane crashed into a medical college. In the disaster, 241 passengers and crew members were killed, including 169 Indian citizens and 52 Britons. In addition, 19 people on the ground were killed and another 67 were seriously injured. Because of the high number of British citizens who died, this was one of the deadliest aviation disasters for Britain.

Ramesh, who had lived for about 20 years in the city of Leicester in the UK, was on his way home after a family visit to India. Images of him emerging from the wreckage, injured but standing on his feet, became a symbol of the disaster and drew attention around the world. His boarding pass, which showed that he had been seated in 11A in the relatively front section of the plane, was published by many media outlets. His brother Ajay, who was seated several rows behind him, was killed in the crash.

In an interview with the British news agency Press Association, conducted on the one-year anniversary of the disaster, Ramesh described the ongoing struggle with its aftermath: "What many people may not fully understand is that the trauma did not end on the day of the disaster. I live with significant emotional scars, with the loss of my brother, and with the constant unanswered questions about how and why this happened."

According to him, the need for answers is not his alone, but also shared by the other victims’ families: "I know these questions are not only in my head — they occupy every family that was affected. More than anything, people need integrity, transparency and answers. Nothing will ever change what happened, but the families deserve clarity."

Even a year after the crash, the official investigation has still not been completed. Preliminary findings published last year indicated that the plane’s two fuel switches were moved to the "cutoff" position shortly after takeoff, which caused the fuel supply to the engines to stop. However, the circumstances that led to that are still unclear.

In July of last year, The Wall Street Journal reported, based on sources familiar with the details of the investigation, that a recording from the black box captured first officer Clive Kunder asking captain Sumeet Sabharwal why he had moved the switches to cutoff. According to the report, Kunder sounded surprised and later even frightened, while Sabharwal remained calm. Even so, it has not been determined whether the action was accidental or intentional.

Alongside the emotional struggle, Ramesh and his family are also facing financial hardship. According to reports in Britain, Air India transferred 21,500 pounds to him after the disaster to help support him, his wife and their five-year-old son. But his lawyer said that since the crash, he has struggled to return to regular work, and his family is now living on less than 1,000 pounds a month. According to the lawyer, his attempts to meet with the airline’s CEO have not borne fruit.