The British man who was the sole survivor of Thursday’s Air India plane crash said he managed to escape the wreckage through an opening in the fuselage.
“I managed to unbuckle myself, used my leg to push through that opening, and crawled out,” Vishwashkumar Ramesh told Indian state media DD News.
Mr Ramesh, 40, was in seat 11A on the London-bound Boeing 787 flight when it went down shortly after take off in Ahmedabad, western India on Thursday.
Air India said all other passengers and crew were killed – including 169 Indian nationals and 52 British nationals. More than 200 bodies have been recovered so far, though it is unclear how many were passengers and how many were from the ground.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Mr Ramesh said the lights inside the aircraft “started flickering” moments after take off.
Within five to 10 seconds, it felt like the plane was “stuck in the air”, he said.
“The lights started flickering green and white…suddenly slammed into a building and exploded.”
The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a building used as accommodation for doctors at the Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College and Civil Hospital.
But Mr Ramesh, a businessman from Leicester who has a wife and four-year-old son, said the section he was sitting in landed near the ground and did not make contact with the building.
“When the door broke and I saw there was some space, I tried to get out of there and I did.
“No one could have got out from the opposite side, which was towards the wall, because it crashed there.”
The cause of the crash is not yet known. Officials say one black box has been recovered from the crash site, according to news agencies, which will be able to provide further information for investigators.
Video shared on social media showed Mr Ramesh walking towards an ambulance with smoke billowing in the background.
He told the Indian broadcaster he could not believe that he came out of the wreckage alive.
“I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me,” he said.
“For a moment, I felt like I was going to die too, but when I opened my eyes and looked around, I realised I was alive.
“I still can’t believe how I survived. I walked out of the rubble.”
Dr Dhaval Gameti, who treated Mr Ramesh, said he was “disorientated, with multiple injuries all over his body”, but that he appears to be “out of danger”.
On Friday morning, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the crash site before making his way to the hospital to meet injured people including Mr Ramesh, and the families of victims.
A Downing Street spokesman said the Foreign Office had been “in contact with Mr Ramesh this morning to offer consular support”.
Mr Ramesh was born in India but has lived in the UK since 2003. His brother, Ajay, was also onboard the plane.
Their cousin, Hiren Kantilal, said that they had been in India for a few months on holiday.
He said the family had spoken to Mr Ramesh on Friday morning, adding that he was able to walk and speak “properly” to them.
“We want to get out as soon as possible and meet… Vishwashkumar,” he said.
He added that they were looking for further support from the British government to get to India, which he said they had not yet received.
The BBC has asked the Foreign Office whether it has been in touch with Mr Ramesh’s family.
A spokesperson confirmed they have been in contact with Mr Ramesh, and said: “Our consular staff are ready to support families of British Nationals who were on board Air India flight AI171.”
Following the crash, the Foreign Office set up helplines for British nationals in the UK and in India requiring consular assistance, or for those who have concerns for friends or family.
