“The plane crash was tragic. I’ve already conveyed to them (India), anything we can do. It’s a large, resilient country, and they’ll manage it, I’m confident,” Trump remarked in response to a question at the White House during an event.
He added that he has informed India that “anything we can do, we’ll be there immediately”.
“You know, we observed the plane. It appeared to be flying quite well. It didn’t seem like there was an explosion. Just seemed like the engines perhaps lost power, but that is a dreadful crash. It’s one of the worst in aviation history,” he stated.
An Air India flight headed to London, carrying 242 passengers and crew, crashed in a residential neighborhood in Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff, likely claiming nearly all lives on board in one of India’s most tragic air disasters. Among those on board were 169 Indians, 53 British, one Canadian, and seven Portuguese citizens in addition to 12 crew members.
Trump described the crash as “horrific” and expressed that “it seems like most are gone”.
However, he acknowledged that there might be a few survivors.
“Nobody knows. Nobody has any idea what it might be,” he mentioned.
The president stated he has provided a “few tips” and “maybe you’ll consider this or that”.
Meanwhile, Boeing President and CEO Kelly Ortberg expressed his heartfelt condolences to the families of the passengers and crew on board Air India Flight 171, as well as to all affected in Ahmedabad.
The CEO mentioned he has spoken with Air India Chairman N Chandrasekaran to extend Boeing’s full support.
A Boeing team “is prepared to assist with the investigation led by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.” Boeing will defer to India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to provide information regarding Air India Flight 171, in line with the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organisation protocol, he added.
