In the aftermath of the Ahmedabad plane crash, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said that the specialised force has recovered 81 bodies and has deployed seven teams to help with the emergency. Boeing 787-8, Air India flight 171, crashed shortly after taking off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday night. According to NDRF Inspector Vinay Kumar, the operation is not complete, and bodies are still being recovered from the site.
"The operation is not yet complete. It is ongoing. We have recovered 81 bodies so far. We can't say anything about the total number of deaths as of now. Seven teams of NDRF have been deployed," Kumar told reporters here.

Ahmedabad plane crash: Centre launches probe

A London-bound Air India plane, AI171, carrying 242 passengers and crew, crashed in a crowded residential area here minutes after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday. According to Air India, of the 230 passengers, 169 were Indians, 53 British, 7 were Portuguese, and 1 was Canadian.
The pilot of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner issued a 'Mayday' distress call, denoting a full emergency, soon after takeoff, the Air Traffic Control at Ahmedabad said. However, thereafter, no response was given by the aircraft to the calls made by ATC, the aviation regulator DGCA said in a statement.
A formal investigation has been launched by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into the deadly crash, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu confirmed on Thursday. He informed that the Indian government was also constituting a high-level committee of people with expertise in multiple disciplines to examine the crash incident and devise ways to strengthen aviation safety by preventing such incidents in the future.
Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), a federal agency authorised by Congress to investigate civil aviation accidents in the United States, is gearing up to send a team of investigators to India to assist with probing the deadly Ahmedabad plane crash.
The crash site lies just outside the airport perimeter, in a densely populated residential and institutional zone. The sole survivor is being treated in a hospital.
(With agency inputs)