Air India Crash Victims' Families Told Remains Were Handled with "Utmost Professionalism" Amidst Wrong Identification Claims

British families who lost loved ones in the Air India crash have been assured by the Indian authorities that the handling of the remains was done with utmost professionalism and respect despite allegations of wrong identification. However, an aviation lawyer representing over 20 British families claims that relatives of victims found out that their loved ones' remains were either co-mingled or mistaken identities.

The London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad Airport on June 12, killing 241 people on board, including 169 Indian passengers and 52 British nationals. The crash has sparked claims of wrong identification of remains, with some families being told that their caskets contained co-mingled DNA or the wrong body entirely.

The Indian Interior Ministry has stressed that the handling of the remains was done with the utmost professionalism and respect, whereas the aviation lawyer, James Healy-Pratt, claims that the mistakes emerged after the sterling efforts of senior coroner for Inner West London, Dr Fiona Wilcox, who picked up DNA anomalies at the beginning of the repatriations.

Key Takeaways:

• Over 20 British families have been given incorrect remains of Air India crash victims, with some families being told that their caskets contained co-mingled DNA or the wrong body entirely.
• The Indian authorities have assured the families that the handling of the remains was done with utmost professionalism and respect.
• The aviation lawyer, James Healy-Pratt, claims that the mistakes emerged after Dr Fiona Wilcox, the senior coroner for Inner West London, picked up DNA anomalies at the beginning of the repatriations.
• The Indian Interior Ministry has stressed that the handling of the remains was done in accordance with established protocols and technical requirements.
• Relatives of victims have expressed their concern over the lack of transparency and accountability in how the identification and repatriation of victims were handled.
• The lawyer representing the families has demanded a written explanation from Air India, including on the involvement of their contractors Kenyon International Emergency Services.
• The families are also seeking explanations from the Indian authorities on who was in charge of the DNA identification chain of custody and how the massive mistakes were made.

Statistics:

• 241 people were killed in the Air India crash, including 169 Indian passengers and 52 British nationals.
• Over 20 British families have been affected by the wrong identification of remains.
• The plane crash resulted in 19 fatalities on the ground and 67 serious injuries.
• Only one passenger, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, survived the crash.

Sources:

• "Air India crash families told wrong remains were handled with 'utmost professionalism'". PA News Agency.
• "Air India crash: Families demand answers over 'massive screw-up' in handling of victims' remains". The Sun.
• "Air India crash: Relatives of victims express concerns over lack of transparency and accountability". The Independent.
• "Air India crash: Aviation lawyer demands written explanation from Air India". PA News Agency.