On what was meant to be a short trip to the city for school supplies, a teenager’s life changed in seconds when he filmed one of India’s deadliest aviation disasters.
Seventeen-year-old Aryan Asari, who recorded the harrowing crash of an Air India Dreamliner 787-8 in Ahmedabad, is still dealing with the emotional aftermath.
The disaster, which occurred last Thursday, resulted in the deaths of 241 passengers and crew on board, as well as nearly 30 people on the ground.
According to his father, Maganbhai Asari, Aryan had long been fascinated by airplanes. Every time he heard an aircraft engine overhead, he would run outside to catch a glimpse.
He enjoyed watching the sky streak with white contrails and listening to the sound of planes flying over his village near the Gujarat-Rajasthan border.
This month, he traveled to Ahmedabad for the first time. His sister was due to take a police entrance examination in the city, and Aryan decided to accompany her. He told his father that he wanted to buy new notebooks and clothes during the trip.
Maganbhai, a retired army soldier now working for the Ahmedabad metro, had been living alone in a small rooftop room on a three-story building close to the airport. Aryan had often asked his father if airplanes could be seen from the terrace, and was excited to visit the city for a closer view.
The siblings arrived at their father’s home around noon on Thursday. After lunch, Maganbhai left for work, leaving Aryan and his sister at home. Aryan went up to the terrace to film videos of the house to share with his friends.
While on the terrace, Aryan noticed an airplane flying unusually low. “It was shaking, moving left and right,” he said. He began filming the aircraft, unaware of the impending disaster. Moments later, the plane plummeted and exploded in a fireball upon impact.
“I saw the plane. It was going down and down. Then it wobbled and crashed right before my eyes,” Aryan told BBC Gujarati. Thick smoke and flames engulfed the skyline, making it clear what had just happened.
Aryan immediately sent the video to his father and called him, panicked. “I saw it papa, I saw it crash,” he expressed. His father reassured him over the phone, asking him to stay calm. “He sounded so frightened… he kept asking me what would happen to him,” Maganbhai recalled.
Though advised not to share the video further, Aryan, still shaken, sent it to a few friends. “The next thing we knew, the clip was everywhere,” his father revealed.
The video soon became a key piece of evidence for aviation investigators. It also drew intense media attention. “We have been swamped by interview requests. Reporters have been milling around my house day and night asking to speak to him,” Maganbhai shared.
Breaking news
A passenger plane bound for London crashed shortly after departing from Ahmedabad, India.
Reports indicate that there were 244 passengers on board at the time of the accident. pic.twitter.com/DlrZGGxU6w
— MDN NEWS (@MDNnewss) June 12, 2025
The family home was surrounded by neighbors, reporters, and camera crews, making it difficult to maintain peace. The police also visited the home and took Aryan to the station, where he gave a statement. Mr Asari clarified that Aryan was not detained — he was only questioned for a few hours.
In another interview, Aryan recounted the experience. “I came here on June 12, when I saw the plane so close, I thought of making a video. I thought the airport was nearby, so the aircraft would land there. But when I saw the huge fireball then I found out it had burst into flames.” Afterward, he informed his sister and called his father.
The experience has taken a psychological toll on Aryan. “My son is so scared that he has stopped using his phone,” Maganbhai mentioned.
The family decided to send him back to their village, where he has resumed his school, but the trauma remains. “Every time his phone rings, he gets scared,” his father noted.
Mr Asari is hopeful his son will recover. “I know he will be fine with time. But I don’t think my son will try looking for airplanes in the sky again,” he added.
The aircraft involved in the Air India #AI171 crash is a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with registration number VT-ANB and serial number 36279.
First flight of the aircraft was on 2013-12-14 and it was delivered to Air India in January 2014. pic.twitter.com/gC1Mk5WoCa
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) June 12, 2025
Aryan’s footage continues to aid the ongoing investigation into the crash, but for him, the event marked a tragic turn in what was meant to be a simple family visit.
While Aryan grappled with the trauma of what he witnessed, another voice added to the unfolding story — the brother of the crash’s sole survivor, who shared his account of the tragedy and its aftermath from their home in Leicester, United Kingdom.
Nayan Kumar Ramesh, whose brother Vishwashkumar Ramesh was the only person to survive the incident, recalled the moments leading up to the crash and the emotional toll it had taken on their family.
According to Nayan, just minutes before the crash, their father received a call from Vishwashkumar as he prepared for takeoff.
“And then literally like two minutes later, he video-called my dad. As he crashed, he said, ‘Our plane’s crashed,'” Nayan recounted. Vishwashkumar was said to be traveling with one of his other brothers, who unfortunately didn’t survive the crash.
Still grappling with the reality of the situation, Nayan relayed his brother’s words after the accident. Vishwashkumar reportedly told them, “I don’t know where my brother is. I don’t see any other passengers. I don’t know how I’m alive, how I exited the plane.”
The tragedy has left the Ramesh family in deep sorrow. Nayan, reflecting on the ordeal, shared, “I’ve got no words to describe it.”
Speaking about the survival of his brother amidst the loss, he added, “It’s a miracle he survived. What about the other miracle for my other brother,” highlighting the loss of another sibling in the crash.
The traumatic experience has also impacted Nayan’s sense of safety while flying. “Just hearing about this crash, I’m scared to fly now, to even stay on a plane now,” he said.
As the investigation into the Air India crash continues, the stories of those directly touched by the tragedy — from a teenager who unintentionally captured its final moments, to the family of its only known survivor — reflect the deep and lasting impact of the disaster on ordinary lives.
