Latest news with #AirIndiaDisaster
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Air India crash widow is sent the remains of her husband in TWO coffins - as more horrors emerge following botched recovery of UK victims
Horrific new blunders in the operation to identify and repatriate victims of the Air India disaster emerged last night as the grim scandal began to widen. When one family unzipped the body bag shown to them at a mortuary, they were reportedly aghast to find two heads – one belonging to their relative, the other unrecognisable. And a distraught British widow received the remains of her husband in two coffins, delivered weeks apart, obliging her to cremate him twice. The heart-rending mix-ups were revealed as a lawyer representing about 30 of the 53 bereaved British families insisted flaws in the process were widespread, with more claims of relatives being given the wrong remains. While the fiasco has hitherto been blamed on the incompetence of Indian rescue workers and doctors, aviation law specialist Sarah Stewart says some responsibility lies with the team sent by the UK Government to assist them. 'Sadly, the stories of mixed remains have been repeatedly recounted to us by families we represent,' said Ms Stewart. 'Our clients feel that they were let down, with allegedly apparent mistakes by the forensic teams in India and insufficient support by British consular services, the Foreign Office and the British crisis response teams. We have been working with [British] families to prepare a letter to the Prime Minister to address these distressing errors.' On Wednesday, the Daily Mail revealed how the grief of two British families had been exacerbated by the botched operation. The following day, Sir Keir Starmer raised concerns with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during his visit to London. Mr Modi is said to have agreed that this was extremely distressing for the families of the victims. A government spokesman said: 'Formal identification of bodies is a matter for the Indian authorities.' In one case, an unnamed family were told the wrong body had been returned. The error only emerged when a DNA match found by the Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad was double-checked by scientists acting for Inner West London Coroner's Court. The lab also found the remains of microbiologist Shobhana Patel, 71, from Orpington in Kent, had been commingled in the coffin with those of an unknown victim. Indian scientists had identified Mrs Patel – who was travelling back to London on Air India Flight 171 with her husband, Ashok, 74 – using DNA supplied by her son, Miten. That his mother's remains had to be separated from the other person's before she could be cremated in a Hindu ceremony this week has deepened his family's trauma. He said: 'People were tired and there was a lot of pressure, but there has to be a level of responsibility that you're sending the right bodies to the UK. There's a lot of anger and frustration.' For Miten, poignant consolation has come with the return of a ring his father was wearing. He is sure it would have been on the hand clutching his mother's as the plane crashed and will wear it in their memory. How the mistakes happened is now under severe scrutiny. Since 81 of the 242 on board the aircraft had the surname Patel, there are suggestions this may have caused confusion. But Mahnendra Patel, 54, who lost his mother, brother and nephew, pointed out every Patel also has another last name which acts as their 'bar code'. Instead he puts it down to a recovery operation that differed from those we see after disasters here. He added: 'They were taking relatives' DNA samples round the clock but they could only do about 15 or 20 tests a day, so the bodies were put in bags, marked with an identity code and stacked in the freezer.' It was when they unzipped one of these bags that a family found the two heads, according to the Times of India. When DNA tests threw up a positive match, relatives were asked to sign for their family members and be photographed with their assigned coffins, says Mahnendra. International emergency services specialists Kenyon then flew them to Britain. Checks in London have thankfully proved Mahnendra received his loved ones' remains. However, the Indian coroner's report said the three bodies would be intact, with his nephew's broken leg the only visible injury. But the British report lists multiple fractures and one of his mother's hands is missing. 'I don't blame them,' Mahnendra says. 'It's a Third World country, so you are going to get a bit of a mix up.'
Irish Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
British families ‘sent wrong remains' after loved ones killed in Air India crash
British families grieving after the Air India disaster have discovered that the remains of their loved ones have been wrongly identified before repatriation, according to an aviation lawyer representing them. Relatives of one victim had to abandon funeral plans after being informed that their coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger. In another case, the 'commingled' remains of more than one person killed in the crash were mistakenly placed in the same casket and had to be separated before the interment could go ahead, the Daily Mail reported. The news came before the start of a two-day state visit to London by India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, on Wednesday. Mr Modi will meet his British counterpart, Keir Starmer, to sign a landmark free trade agreement between India and the UK. READ MORE The site of the crash in Ahmedabad, India on June 12th. Photograph: Siddharaj Solanki/Bloomberg The mistakes emerged when the Inner West London coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox sought to verify the repatriated Britons' identities by matching their DNA with samples provided by the families, the Mail reported. A London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12th, killing 241 people on board, of whom 52 were returning Britons. Another 19 people died on the ground and 67 were seriously injured. A preliminary report found the plane's fuel switches had been moved to cut-off, deepening the mystery of what happened and leaving families distressed and seeking answers. The report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, published on July 10th, said both of the plane's fuel switches moved to the cut-off position immediately after take-off, stopping fuel supply to the engines. While some of the dead were cremated or buried in India, the remains of at least 12 victims had been repatriated, said James Healy-Pratt, an aviation lawyer representing many of the British families. He said he is expecting Mr Starmer to raise these issues with Mr Modi this week at their meeting in London. 'The families deserve urgent answers and assurances about the whereabouts of their loved ones,' said Mr Healy-Pratt, who told the Mail he was looking into what had happened during the identification process. [ Air India victims' families not satisfied with 'vague' initial report Opens in new window ] 'I've been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back,' he said. 'But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. It has been going on for a couple of weeks [and] I think these families deserve an explanation.' He said while the family who received the 'commingled' remains had been able to have them separated to hold a funeral service, the second family had been left 'in limbo'. '[They] have no one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket. And if isn't their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it's another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains.' He added: 'The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.' Approached by the Mail, Dr Wilcox said it would be inappropriate for her to comment. Mr Healy-Pratt said the families were in contact with their MPs, the foreign office and the offices of the prime minister and the foreign secretary. 'On the known evidence, the chain of custody of these lost loved ones was unacceptably poor,' he said. 'We are investigating the causes of those failures and demanding answers on behalf of these deserving British families. We await formal responses from Air India, and their emergency response contractors Kenyon International Emergency Services.' Air India said it has no comment on the report. But an airline official, who wished to remain unnamed, noted that the airline had not been involved in the identification of the remains. 'It was the hospital, they who were the ones who confirmed the next-of-kin matches,' they said. Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India's ministry of external affairs, said: 'We have seen the report and have been working closely with the UK side from the moment these concerns and issues were brought to our attention.' He added that 'in the wake of the tragic crash, the concerned authorities had carried out identification of victims as per established protocols and technical requirements. All mortal remains were handled with utmost professionalism and with due regard for the dignity of the deceased. We are continuing to work with the UK authorities on addressing any concerns related to this issue.'
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
British families ‘sent wrong remains' after loved ones killed in Air India crash
British families grieving after the Air India disaster have discovered that the remains of their loved ones have been wrongly identified before repatriation, according to an aviation lawyer representing them. Relatives of one victim had to abandon funeral plans after being informed that their coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger. In another case, the 'commingled' remains of more than one person killed in the crash were mistakenly placed in the same casket and had to be separated before the interment could go ahead, the Daily Mail reported. The news came before the start of a two-day state visit to London by India's prime minister on Wednesday. Narendra Modi will meet his British counterpart, Keir Starmer, to sign a landmark free trade agreement between India and the UK. The mistakes emerged when the Inner West London coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox sought to verify the repatriated Britons' identities by matching their DNA with samples provided by the families, the Mail reported. A London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on 12 June, killing 241 people onboard, of whom 52 were returning Britons. Another 19 people died on the ground and 67 were seriously injured. A preliminary report found the plane's fuel switches had been moved to cut-off, deepening the mystery of what happened and leaving families distressed and seeking answers. The report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, published on 10 July, said both of the plane's fuel switches moved to the cut-off position immediately after takeoff, stopping fuel supply to the engines. While some of the dead were cremated or buried in India, the remains of at least 12 victims had been repatriated, said James Healy-Pratt, an aviation lawyer representing many of the British families. Healy-Pratt said he was looking into what had happened during the identification process. 'I've been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back,' he told the Mail. 'But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. It has been going on for a couple of weeks [and] I think these families deserve an explanation.' He said while the family who received the 'commingled' remains had been able to have them separated to hold a funeral service, the second family had been left 'in limbo'. '[They] have no one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket. And if isn't their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it's another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains.' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion He added: 'The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.' Approached by the Mail, Wilcox said it would be inappropriate for her to comment. Healy-Pratt said the families were in contact with their MPs, the Foreign Office and the offices of the prime minister and the foreign secretary. 'On the known evidence, the chain of custody of these lost loved ones was unacceptably poor,' he said. 'We are investigating the causes of those failures and demanding answers on behalf of these deserving British families. We await formal responses from Air India, and their emergency response contractors Kenyon International Emergency Services.'
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
British families ‘sent wrong remains' of loved ones killed in Air India crash
British families grieving after the Air India disaster have discovered that the remains of their loved ones have been wrongly identified and repatriated, according to an aviation lawyer representing them. Relatives of one victim had to abandon funeral plans after being informed that their coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger. In another case, the 'commingled' remnants of more than one person killed in the crash were mistakenly placed in the same casket and had to be separated before the internment could go ahead, the Daily Mail reported. The news came ahead of the start of a two-day state visit to London by India's prime minister on Wednesday. Narendra Modi will meet his British counterpart, Keir Starmer, to sign a landmark free trade agreement between India and the UK. The mistakes emerged when Inner West London coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox sought to verify the repatriated Britons' identities by matching their DNA with samples provided by the families, the Mail reported. The London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on 12 June, killing 241 people onboard, of which 52 were returning Britons. Another 19 people died on the ground and 67 were seriously injured. A preliminary report found the plane's fuel switches were cut off, deepening the mystery of what happened and leaving families distressed and seeking answers. The report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, published on 10 July, said both of the plane's fuel switches moved to the cut-off position immediately after takeoff, stopping fuel supply to the engines. While some of the dead were cremated or buried in India, the remains of at least 12 victims have been repatriated, said James Healy-Pratt, an aviation lawyer representing many of the British families. Healy-Pratt said he was looking into what had happened during the identification process. 'I've been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back,' he told the Mail. 'But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. It has been going on for a couple of weeks [and] I think these families deserve an explanation.' He said while one the family who received the 'commingled' remains had been able to have them separated and hold a funeral service, the second family had been left 'in limbo'. '[They] have no one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket. And if isn't their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it's another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains.' Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion He added: 'The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.' Approached by the Mail, Wilcox said it would be inappropriate for her to comment. Healy-Pratt said the families were in contact with their MPs, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the offices of the prime minister and the foreign secretary. 'On the known evidence, the chain of custody of these lost loved ones was unacceptably poor,' he said. 'We are investigating the causes of those failures and demanding answers on behalf of these deserving British families. We await formal responses from Air India, and their emergency response contractors – Kenyon International Emergency Services.'
News.com.au
7 days ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Families sent wrong bodies after Air India disaster
Families of UK residents killed in last month's Air India disaster have been sent the wrong bodies in repatriation blunders. The Daily Mail reports that at least two cases of mistaken identity had come to light, with one family having to abandon a funeral after being informed their coffin contained an unknown body. In another case, a coffin contained 'co-mingled' remains of more than one person killed in the flight 171 crash at Ahmedabad in western India on June 12. The scandal has sparked top-level inquiries in both the UK and India, the Mail reports, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to raise concerns with counterpart Narendra Modi this week. There were 52 British citizens killed among the 261 people who died after the plane lost power and crashed into a residential area soon after it lifted off to fly to London. All but one of the 242 people on board died as well as 19 people on the ground. Aviation lawyer James Healy-Pratt has been engaged to represent UK-based people impacted by the tragedy, with the remains of 12 people repatriated so far. 'I've been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back,' he told the Mail. 'But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. 'It has been going on for a couple of weeks (and) I think these families deserve an explanation.' Mr Healy-Pratt said the family which had received the wrong body had been left 'in limbo' since the devastating discovery was made. '(They) have no one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket. 'And if isn't their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it's another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains. 'The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.' Investigations continue into how the disaster unfolded, with mounting attention on the actions of lead pilot Captain Sumeet Sabharwal. Some experts who have reviewed the initial report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) believe a pilot on turned off two switches controlling fuel flow to the plane's engines. The first was moved three seconds after lift off and the other one second later, the AAIB report found, before being turned back on a further 10 seconds later. Fingers have been pointed at Captain Sabharwal because his younger co-pilot, Clive Kunder, would have had his 'hands full' while flying the plane. Air India's inspection of the locking feature on the fuel control switches of its existing Boeing 787 aircraft found no issues, an internal communication circulated within the airline said on July 17. India's aviation regulator ordered the country's airlines this week to investigate the locking feature on the switches of several Boeing models. The order came after Boeing notified operators that the fuel switch locks on its jets were safe. However, it was in line with a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) issued by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2018, which recommended inspection of the locks to ensure they could not be moved accidentally. Air India's probe found no problems with the locking mechanism. 'Over the weekend, our Engineering team initiated precautionary inspections on the locking mechanism of Fuel Control Switch (FCS) on all our Boeing 787 aircraft,' the airline's flight operations department said in a communication to its pilots. 'The inspections have been completed and no issues were found.' A spokesperson for the UK government told the Mail formal identification of the bodies was a 'matter for the Indian authorities'. 'We understand that this is an extremely distressing time for the families, and our thoughts remain with them,' they said. – with AFP.
