Ahmedabad crash: Last rites of AI pilot Sabharwal, crew member Patil performed
Mumbai: Last rites of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, pilot in command of the Air India plane that crashed in Ahmedabad last week, were performed in Mumbai on Tuesday with his grief-stricken father bidding a heart-wrenching, tearful farewell to his son before the cremation.
In a related development, Maithili Patil, a crew member aboard the ill-fated Air India flight AI-171, was cremated in Raigad district amid outpouring of emotions as local residents, relatives and friends turned up in large numbers to pay tributes to her.
Mortal remains of both Sabharwal and Patil were brought to Mumbai from Ahmedabad earlier in the day, nearly a week after the crash.
The last rites of Sabharwal were performed at an electric crematorium in suburban Chakala in the presence of family members. After performing the final rites of the 56-year-old veteran pilot, his father and other family members left the crematorium at around 11.15 am, an official said.
Earlier in the morning, the casket carrying the mortal remains of Sabharwal reached the Mumbai airport by a flight and was taken to his residence, located at Jal Vayu Vihar in Powai area, by his family members.
Several friends and relatives of Sabharwal as well as local residents gathered outside his residence to pay homage.
Businessman Niranjan Hiranandani and local MLA Dilip Lande were among those who visited Sabharwal's residence to pay respects to him. The late pilot's elderly father Pushkaraj broke down as he offered an emotional tribute to his son with folded hands.
A hearse carrying the pilot's mortal remains then left for the electric crematorium at Chakala.
The London-bound Air India flight AI-171 carrying 242 passengers and crew members crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12. All but one on board the plane died along with 29 on the ground when the aircraft smashed into a medical complex.
The ill-fated flight was under the command of Sabharwal along with First Officer Clive Kundar. While Sabharwal had 8,200 hours of flying experience, Kundar 1,100 hours, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) earlier said in a statement.
The aircraft departed from the Ahmedabad airport at 1.39 pm. The pilot (Sabharwal) of the plane issued a 'Mayday' distress call, denoting a full emergency, soon after take-off to the Air Traffic Control at Ahmedabad.
Moments later, the plane (AI 171), a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, smashed into the medical complex located outside the airport compound.
Air India crew member Patil was cremated at her native village. She was among the 12 crew members who were killed in the crash.
After identifying her body through DNA matching, the mortal remains were handed over to her relatives in Ahmedabad and flown to Mumbai on Tuesday morning, an official said.
Patil's mortal remains were taken to Nhava village in Raigad district, where last rites were performed in the presence of her family members, friends, and local residents, he said.
After completing her training, Patil had joined Air India two years ago as a crew member.
