"some of them have got the wrong remains"
British families grieving after the Air India plane crash have discovered that their loved ones’ remains were wrongly identified before repatriation, according to an aviation lawyer representing them.
Relatives of one victim were forced to abandon funeral plans after learning that the coffin contained the body of an unknown passenger.
In another case, the “commingled” remains of more than one person killed in the crash were mistakenly placed in the same casket and had to be separated before burial.
The news comes ahead of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s two-day state visit to London.
Modi is expected to meet Sir Keir Starmer to sign a landmark free trade agreement.
The identification errors came to light when Inner West London coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox attempted to match the repatriated victims’ DNA with samples provided by family members.
The London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport on June 12, 2025.
It struck a medical college, killing 241 people onboard, including 52 British nationals returning home. Another 19 people died on the ground and 67 were seriously injured.
A preliminary report published on July 10 by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found that the plane’s fuel switches had moved to the cut-off position immediately after takeoff, cutting off the fuel supply to the engines.
While some victims were cremated or buried in India, the remains of at least 12 people were repatriated to the UK, said James Healy-Pratt, an aviation lawyer representing several British families.
Mr Healy-Pratt said he expected Starmer to raise the issue with Modi.
He told Daily Mail: “The families deserve urgent answers and assurances about the whereabouts of their loved ones.
“I’ve been sitting down in the homes of these lovely British families over the last month, and the first thing they want is their loved ones back.
“But some of them have got the wrong remains and they are clearly distraught over this. It has been going on for a couple of weeks [and] I think these families deserve an explanation.”
He said the family who received “commingled” remains had been able to have them separated and hold a funeral service, but the other family had been left “in limbo”.
Mr Healy-Pratt added: “[They] have no one to bury because it was the wrong person in their casket.
“And if it isn’t their relative, the question is, who is it in that coffin? Presumably it’s another passenger and their relatives have been given the wrong remains.
“The coroner also has a problem because she has an unidentified person in her jurisdiction.”
Mr Healy-Pratt confirmed that families had contacted their MPs, the Foreign Office, and the offices of the prime minister and foreign secretary.
He said: “On the known evidence, the chain of custody of these lost loved ones was unacceptably poor.
“We are investigating the causes of those failures and demanding answers on behalf of these deserving British families.”
“We await formal responses from Air India, and their emergency response contractors Kenyon International Emergency Services.”
Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, said:
“We have seen the report and have been working closely with the UK side from the moment these concerns and issues were brought to our attention.
“In the wake of the tragic crash, the concerned authorities had carried out identification of victims as per established protocols and technical requirements.
“All mortal remains were handled with utmost professionalism and with due regard for the dignity of the deceased.
“We are continuing to work with the UK authorities on addressing any concerns related to this issue.”
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