Air India crash: ‘Hero' Captain Sumeet Sabharwal's crucial midair call saved dozens of families in three-storey building
Captain Sumeet Sabharwal reportedly diverted his crashing Air India flight to avoid residential buildings, saving many lives. The crash resulted in 241 fatalities, but local residents credit him as a hero for his timely decision-making.
Sumeet Sabharwal, captain of Air India flight 171 enroute to London's Gatwick airport which crashed in Ahmedabad shortly after take off on 12 June and killed 241 on board, has been hailed as “hero” by locals as he reportedly diverted the ill-fated aircraft at the last second to prevent any apartment block, saving many lives, The Sun reported.
All 18 families residing in the three-story building beneath the flight path are certain that Captain Sumeet Sabharwal saved their lives. His Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which was heading straight toward their homes, got reportedly diverted as skillful handling of the emergency averted the disaster at that place.
What did residents of three-story building under the flight path say?
“The building was shaking. We were so scared. There was chaos in the street and fire and smoke. Any closer and we would have died. The pilot saved us. We have always worried this might happen because the planes go over so low,” The Sun quoted Geeta Patni, 48, one of the closest residents to the crash site, as saying.
Jahanvi Rajput, 28, said, “Thanks to the pilot Captain Sabharwal, we survived. He’s a hero. It is because of him we are alive. The green space next to us was visible to him and that’s where he went.”
“If the plane had crashed into this residential area, there would have been hundreds more victims,” Mum-of-two Chancal Bai, 50, stated.
The plane carrying 242 passengers saw one British survivor. It crashed into the BJ medical college, further taking lives of 29, including 5 MBBS students. It had turned into fireball of devastation.
Who was Captain Sumeet Sabharwal?
Captain Sumeet, 54, was the son of an officer from India’s civil aviation authority. He was a seasoned pilot with 8,200 hours of flight experience and also the primary caregiver for his father, now in his 80s, whom he called just prior to the takeoff.
According to colleagues, who paid tribute to Captain Sumeet, “He was a good, quiet person.”
He had recently shown his desire to take a step back from aviation to care for his ailing father, Pushkaraj, an India Today report said. “Sumit had spoken to him just three days ago, saying he wanted to leave flying and come home to care for him. His father couldn't say a word. His eyes were filled with tears,” the report quoted family friend Lande as saying.