Air India: Man and Heavily Pregnant Wife Who Travelled to India For Baby Shower Die in Plane Crash

• A man and his heavily pregnant wife, who had gone for their baby shower in India, died in the Air India plane crash while returning to the UK
• The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, en route to London, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, India, on June 12, 2025
• A close friend of the couple shared how long they had been married and other details about them

A man, Vaibhav Patel, and his heavily pregnant wife, Jinal Goswami, were among those who died in the Air India crash.

The couple were expecting their first child, and had travelled to Ahmedabad, India, to celebrate their baby shower.

Unfortunately for the expectant couple, the Air India plane that they boarded crashed near the airport in Ahmedabad and exploded in a fireball, killing 241 people on board.

As reported by the BBC, Vaibhav, 29, and his 27-year-old wife were based in Croydon, London, but had recently moved from Southampton in Hampshire due to the man's job.

His wife was seven months pregnant as of the time of the deadly plane crash.

Friend mourns expectant couple killed in crash

A close friend to the couple, Nirav Patel, said the man and his wife were very excited for the birth of their first child, as they had been married for four years.

Nirav, who had been friends with Vaibhav, described the deceased as a good person who always loved to render support to his friends and family.

He said:

"When he worked in Southampton, I saw him a lot. We worked together at Papa Johns in Portswood. The couple were in Ahmedabad to celebrate their own baby shower. It was on 5 June. She was seven months pregnant. They were very happy.

"Vaibhav did not have a father, so he was the big son supporting the family back in India."

Speaking of their final moments, Nirav added:

"He had rung me two days before the flight to tell me he was coming home. We were very good friends and had so much fun together... many trips around India, like to Goa or Rajasthan. This is a massive loss."

Nirav, who said the news came to him and the family of the deceased as a big shock, added that the couple's funeral was held in India on Monday.

There were 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian on the flight.

The mother of a one-year-old child had been identified as the only Canadian who died in the plane crash.

15-year-old boy killed by Air India crash

In a related story on Legit.ng, a 15-year-old boy, Akash Patni, who was resting near his family's tea stall, was tragically among those killed in the crash that shook Ahmedabad in India.

When the crash happened, the boy’s mother, Sita, who was unaware that her son was sleeping nearby, managed to run.

Akash’s mother, Sita, survived with injuries and is in the ICU, unaware that her son died just metres away.

Source: Legit.ng