"He remembers seeing everyone die in front of his eyes.”
Air India’s sole crash survivor has been left traumatised by nightmares where “everyone dies” and refuses to speak about the tragedy, according to his family.
Vishwash Kumar Ramesh was the only person to survive when a Boeing 787 crashed into a residential building shortly after takeoff in Ahmedabad, India.
The June 12 disaster killed 241 passengers and crew, plus 19 people on the ground.
Despite being dubbed India’s “miracle man”, Vishwash remains plagued by survivor’s guilt after losing his brother Ajay, 35, in the crash.
His cousin, Krunal Keshave, from Leicester, said:
“When he sleeps, he dreams he is on the flight. He remembers seeing everyone die in front of his eyes.”
Vishwash had been sitting in seat 11A, next to an emergency exit, and managed to crawl out through a hole in the wreckage. His brother, who sat across the aisle in seat 11J, did not make it.
Krunal added: “He sees him [Ajay] everywhere.
“He speaks but he doesn’t speak about the crash. His wife and his son [who is four] are there with him, supporting him.
“He is currently trying to have a normal life, but he is not going out too much. He is spending time at home with the family. He was living in the house in Diu with his brother before the crash.”
Vishwash chose not to return to Leicester or London, and is recovering in his family’s home in Bucharwada hamlet, Diu.
The two brothers had been returning to the UK after the end of the fishing season at their family business. They had planned to fly back before the monsoon hit.
The Boeing Dreamliner lost altitude moments after taking off from Ahmedabad airport. It plummeted into the compound of a medical college hostel, instantly killing all on board except Vishwash.
The Brit has since spoken briefly about the horror, telling The Sun:
“Everything was visible in front of my eyes when the crash happened.
“I too thought that I was about to die, but then I opened my eyes and realised that I was still alive.”
“It’s a miracle I survived. I am OK physically but I feel terrible that I could not save Ajay.
“If we had been sat together we both might have survived. I tried to get two seats together but someone had already got one.”
The Air India Flight AI171 crash is one of the deadliest involving British nationals in recent memory.
US investigators are now examining what they believe to be a chilling twist in the cockpit.
Flight data suggests Captain Sumeet Sabharwal may have manually flipped the aircraft’s guarded fuel cut-off switches, a move aviation experts say may have been deliberate.
The probe is ongoing.
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