New Delhi: A year after the AI-171 crash killed 260 people in Ahmedabad, Air India says it has compensated most affected families and disbursed nearly Rs 300 crore in compensation and ex gratia assistance.
But with the final crash investigation report still pending and questions being raised over the airline’s push for final settlements, the aftermath of India’s deadliest aviation disaster in decades remains unresolved.
Sources familiar with the investigation told ThePrint that the final report is unlikely to be released in the near future as investigators continue examining the technical and operational aspects of the accident.
According to Air India, interim compensation of Rs 25 lakh has been paid in 96 percent of cases involving those killed in the crash. Among people injured on the ground, 94 percent have received either interim compensation or full and final settlements based on the nature of their injuries and loss of livelihood.
The Tata Group’s AI-171 Memorial and Welfare Trust has also disbursed the Rs 1 crore ex-gratia assistance announced by Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran to 91 percent of affected families.
The compensation process has drawn scrutiny from some families and the lawyer representing the victims and their families.
“Families have been met with resistance and reluctance from Air India. The claims have not been settled. Some families are being asked to sign settlement agreements that could waive their right to pursue future claims against Boeing,” Mike Andrews, US-based aviation lawyer representing the AI-171 victims, told ThePrint.
“If accepted, those agreements could shield Boeing from litigation before the cause of the crash has been established.”
Radhika Mishra, daughter of former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, questioned whether families should be asked to consider final settlements before investigators determine the cause of the crash.
Air India denies pressure on families
Earlier this year, families of several victims also sought the release of black-box data and urged authorities to provide more information about the progress of the investigation, arguing that compensation could not provide accountability or closure.
Air India has rejected suggestions that families are being pressured, saying there is “absolutely no deadline” for accepting final compensation offers and that claimants are free to wait for the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau’s (AAIB) final report before entering into settlement agreements.
“We have sought to ensure that there is absolutely no reason for families to feel pressured to choose between immediate financial support and awaiting the investigation report,” Air India said in an email to Rupani’s daughter accessed by ThePrint.
Rupani was among the passengers killed in the air crash in Ahmedabad on 12 June 2025.
Air India further said the investigation is being conducted independently by the AAIB and that it has no indication of when the final report will be released. The airline said it began engaging families on final compensation in October 2025 after most interim payments had been completed.
However, beyond compensation, Air India said it has undertaken an extensive effort to return belongings recovered from the crash site.
More than 22,000 items were catalogued and documented following the accident. Of the belongings associated with 187 deceased victims, items linked to 139 have been returned to families in India and the United Kingdom.
The airline said belongings connected to 60 of 77 deceased victims that could not initially be linked to specific individuals have also been returned through a dedicated identification process.
Twenty-five digital devices were recovered from the crash site, of which 16 have since been returned to families following screening by authorities.
Air India is also marking the anniversary internally on Friday, with employees across its offices and airports in India and overseas observing a two-minute silence in memory of those who lost their lives in the disaster.
Investigators have since established that both engine fuel-control switches moved to the “cutoff” position shortly after take-off, causing a loss of thrust. Why that happened remains unclear, with the AAIB yet to release its final report.
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)
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