The sole survivor of June’s Air India plane crash, which claimed 260 lives, may never return to Britain because of his fear of flying, his family has revealed.
Leicester businessman Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, was the only passenger to make it out alive after the aircraft went down, but he remains “deeply traumatised” and is receiving counselling in India.
His brother-in-law told the Daily Mail UK: “I think he will stay over there because he would be too frightened to get on a plane again.”
Ramesh, who managed to escape from seat 11A with facial cuts and chest injuries, also lost his younger brother, Ajay, 35, in the tragedy.
His wife, Hiral, and their four-year-old son initially travelled to India to support him but have since returned to the UK. “He is still having treatment,” Hiral confirmed.
Anguish of other bereaved families
Meanwhile, relatives of other British victims have accused both Indian authorities and the UK Foreign Office of failing them. They cited a “severe lack of communication” and claimed some victims’ remains had been mixed up or lost.
In a strongly worded letter to Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, the families wrote: “Silence and a severe lack of communication force us to bring this to your attention. We feel abandoned.”
The bereaved families have since launched legal action, seeking access to Air India’s maintenance and pilot records in their pursuit of justice.
