Ramesh Vishwaskumar Not Alone: Other Miraculous Lone Plane Crash Survivors

In a tragedy that has stunned the nation, 241 people were confirmed dead after an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport on Thursday. The flight, en route to London Gatwick, went down in a densely populated area near the BJ Medical College hostel. In a near-impossible twist of fate, one passenger, identified as Ramesh Vishwaskumar Bucharvada, aged 38, survived the crash and is currently receiving treatment at Civil Hospital in Asarwa, Ahmedabad.

While such occurrences are extraordinarily rare, the history of aviation has recorded just over two dozen instances over the past eight decades where a lone survivor has emerged from a major air disaster involving at least 50 fatalities. The Air India crash now stands as the deadliest of these rare tragedies, surpassing all others in terms of the death toll.

Here are some of the most notable lone survivor incidents:

November 1959

A Curtiss C-46 Commando crashed off the coast of Argentina during a failed landing attempt, killing 51 people. The sole survivor reportedly swam ashore.

February 1985

Lockheed L-188 Electra crashed shortly after takeoff in Nevada, killing 70 people. The only survivor, 17-year-old George Lamson Jr, was ejected from the aircraft still strapped to his seat.

August 1987

McDonnell Douglas MD-82 crashed after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport due to pilot error. Of the 155 people on board, only 4-year-old Cecelia Cichan survived, suffering severe burns and multiple fractures.

October 1991

An Indonesian Air Force C-130 Hercules crashed on takeoff in Jakarta following an engine fire, killing 136 people including those on the ground. One crew member was the lone survivor.

June 2000

Yemenia Airways Airbus A310 plunged into the Indian Ocean during final approach to Comoros, killing 152 of the 153 on board. The sole survivor, 12-year-old Bahia Bakari, clung to floating debris for over nine hours before being rescued by fishermen.

August 2006

Bombardier CRJ100 operated by Comair crashed in Kentucky due to runway confusion, killing 49 of 50 people on board. The sole survivor was first officer James Polehinke, who sustained severe injuries.

February 2014

An Algerian Air Force C-130 Hercules crashed into a mountain in northwest Algeria while transporting military personnel and their families. Of the 78 people on board, only one soldier survived with head injuries.

May 2018

Cubana de Aviación Boeing 737 crashed near Havana shortly after takeoff. Out of 113 people on board, only one woman survived. Initially four were pulled from the wreckage alive, but three later succumbed to injuries.

These isolated cases of survival against all odds continue to defy logic and inspire awe—much like the lone survivor of the Air India crash, whose recovery and story will now be watched closely by the world.

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