Indian investigators retrieve black box data as search for answers continues after deadly Air India crash

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Wreckage showing the tail section of the Air India Boeing 787-8 is pictured in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad June 14, 2025. — AFP pic

AHMEDABAD, June 26 — Indian investigators have successfully retrieved data from the black boxes of a Boeing plane, after it crashed in one of the deadliest air disasters in decades, the government said Thursday.

All but one of the 242 people on board the Air India flight were killed on June 12 when the jet crashed in the western city of Ahmedabad, where at least 19 others were left dead.

Two weeks after the disaster, the civil aviation ministry said investigators have started “the data extraction process” from the plane’s cockpit voice and flight data recorders.

“The analysis... is underway. These efforts aim to reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the accident and identify contributing factors to enhance aviation safety and prevent future occurrences,” a ministry statement said.

The two black boxes were found within days of the crash, but were only flown to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau in New Delhi on Tuesday.

One of the victims’ relatives said they were waiting for answers.

“For now, all we know is the plane took off and then fell. How? Why? Nobody knows. And we want to know. We deserve to know,” said Imtiyaz Ali, whose brother was on the plane with his wife and two children.

“I refuse to believe that our aviation sector is this bad that we still don’t have even a slight indication about what went wrong,” he told AFP on Wednesday.

Air India said last week that the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was “well-maintained” and that the pilots were accomplished flyers.

Investigators have recovered more than 100 mobile phones with the aim of retrieving any recordings that “may provide clues about the final moments of the flight”, Ahmedabad police commissioner GS Malik said last week.

Rescue officials work at the site where Air India flight 171 crashed in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad June 12, 2025. — AFP pic

The plane was being reconstructed at an undisclosed location “to detect any signs of mechanical failure, structural faults, or explosions”, he told journalists.

‘We are moving forward’

Forensic scientists have meanwhile been analysing hundreds of DNA samples in order to identify the victims.

Despite the jet bursting into a fireball when it smashed down moments after takeoff, a forensic dentist told AFP the team has been able to find matches through teeth.

“A protected molar tooth can withstand a temperature of over 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit,” or 980 degrees Celsius, Jayasankar P Pillai said.

The painstaking forensic process has enabled the majority of victims to be identified.

“So far 260 deaths have been confirmed through DNA and police identification,” Gujarat health minister Rushikesh Patel said.

One victim remains unidentified, a member of the forensic team told AFP on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

A police source told AFP two days after the disaster that 279 bodies had been recovered from the crash site.

The plane slammed into accommodation for medics, killing four doctors and injuring at least 24 as it hit the canteen.

Smit Patel, a medical intern, joined a gathering this week to open a makeshift kitchen.

“For us, reopening the mess is symbolic... despite everything, we are moving forward,” he said. — AFP