New Delhi: Calling the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad “one of the worst in aviation history”, US President Donald Trump Thursday said he has offered “immediate” support to India if needed. The US National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) will be leading a team of investigators to assist India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) in its investigation into the crash.
“The plane crash was terrible. I have already told them [India] anything we can do, it is a big country, a strong country, they will handle it I am sure, but I let them know that anything we can do, we will be there immediately,” Trump said.
He added: “It was a horrific crash. Looks like most are gone. Actually they may have a couple of survivors…Nobody has any idea what it might be. I gave them a couple of pointers. We saw the plane. It looked like it was flying pretty well, it did not look like there was an explosion. It looked like the engines maybe lost power, but boy that is a terrible crash. It is one of the worst in aviation history.”
A couple of hours before Trump’s comments, the NTSB in a statement said it will be leading a team of American investigators to assist India in investigating the crash of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, which was scheduled to travel from Ahmedabad to London.
.@POTUS on the Air India plane crash: "The plane crash was terrible. I've already told them, anything we can do… we'll be over there immediately." pic.twitter.com/0WsQT9bpAA
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 12, 2025
“Per international protocols under the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Annex 13, all information on the investigation will be provided by the Government of India,” added the NTSB in its statement.
The NTSB is empowered to participate in the investigation of aviation accidents and serious incidents outside of the US in accordance with the Chicago Convention, which established the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO)—a specialised agency under the United Nations, which governs the Convention on International Civil Aviation. India is a founding member of the ICAO.
The Chicago Convention, signed in 1944, is a cornerstone of the modern aviation system. Under Annex 13 of the Convention, if any serious incident involving an American registered, American operated or American manufactured civil aircraft occurs outside of the US, a foreign state must notify the NTSB.
As the Air India plane that crashed Thursday afternoon with 242 on board was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner—Boeing being an American manufacturer—the NTSB has a role in participating in the investigation of the aviation accident.
“The following are the key objectives of our participation in international aviation accident investigations: Identify safety deficiencies affecting US aviation interests, capture safety lessons learned to prevent accidents in the US and facilitate credible and comprehensive accident investigations where US interests are concerned,” the NTSB notes on its website.
The British Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) has also formally offered its assistance to India’s AAIB in its investigation into the crash.
Air India Flight 171 took off from Ahmedabad at roughly 1.38 pm Thursday, and crashed into an area adjacent to the airport shortly after take-off. Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was among the passengers.
Of the 230 passengers on board, 53 were British nationals. The only known survivor, Ramesh Vishwakumar, is a British national.
India’s AAIB has formally instituted an investigation into the accident, while the government has also set up a high-level committee to examine the matter in detail.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
Also Read: Divided by conflict, 2 Manipur families now bound by grief—a Kuki & a Meitei were among AI 171 crew
Take US help, but do not give control to them. USA has a big stake because if it is proven that the Boeing 787 airliner has safety issues, then it would suffer much. This is especially true as more than one employees of Boeing have raised safety concerns in the last few years and one of the whistleblowers has even committed suicide. Also media should mention that the airliner was a Boeing 787-8 in the title of each and every article.