‘Miracle of seat 11A’ – British man survives horror crash
Almost all of Friday’s newspaper front pages report on the tragic Air India plane crash in which 241 passengers and crew were on board. Only one person survived – a British man sat in seat 11A. The papers dub it the “miracle of seat 11A.”
The man, whose brother was reportedly killed in the crash, was able to walk away with barely any injuries. It’s believed when the plane crashed, the man, who was sitting near the emergency exit was blown out of the door.
The papers had gone print long before Israel attacked Iran – hence why the front pages have no coverage of it. Online, however, the attack on Iran dominates the newspapers’ websites, as experts pick apart why the attack has happened, ponder what comes next and assess what the US-Israel relationship will look like now, as Israel seemingly goes rogue.
The papers adopt a tone of surprise and sadness over the crash. They use terms such as ‘miracle’ to describe the survivor. Most tabloids offer full front-page coverage with full-length images of the crash on the front page.
Air India plane crash: ‘Miracle of seat 11A’
- The Sun says “Miracle Brit in seat 11A” – the seat of Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a father from Leicester who was the only survivor of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner crash which killed all the other 241 passengers and crew on board.
- The Daily Star also calls it a “miracle” noting he was sat in seat 11A and quotes the survivor’s family as saying “he had no idea how he walked away from the wreckage”.
- The Daily Mirror says Ramesh survived the crash “against all odds” and shows him walking away from the crash scene.
- The Daily Express calls it the “miracle” of seat 11A. The paper notes 241 people died on board and a further 53 people were killed on the ground.
- The Times reports King Charles said he was shocked by the disaster whilst the Indian prime minister called it “heartbreaking.”
- The Daily Mail reports Ramesh called his family after he “emerged limping from the smouldering wreck” and told them: “I don’t know how I’m alive.”
- Metro says the survivor “appeared dazed and startled” as he was led away from the crash scene by police. His brother was also on board and is believed to be among those killed.
‘New pressure on Boeing’
- The FT has a different take, looking at the pressure on Boeing. The paper calls it the worst aviation disaster in more than a decade. It is the first crash of that model of plane since it entered service in 2011 – it comes as Boeing is trying to “rebuild trust” following two previous crashes in 2018 and 2019.
- The Guardian reports the plane crashed into a hostel housing “medical students, doctors and their families.”