Air India: Lady Travelling Out of India for First Time for UK Master’s Program Dies in Plane Crash

• A young lady, Payal Khatik, was on her way to pursue a Master’s degree in the UK when she died in an Air India plane crash
• The crash occurred near Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, and only one person survived the deadly incident
• Payal’s family took loans to fund her education in the UK, with high hopes that they would pay back the loans once she graduated and started earning

A young lady, Payal Khatik, who was going for her Master’s degree program in the United Kingdom, was among those killed in an Air India plane crash.

An Air India plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, India, on June 12.

The aircraft crashed near the airport in Ahmedabad, a western city in India, and exploded into flames.

The plane was headed for London’s Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom with 242 people on board, and only one survived the crash.

As reported by NDTV, Payal was travelling out of India for the first time, and was the first person in her family to have that opportunity.

Family took loans for her UK Master’s program

Payal’s father, Suresh Khatik, was full of excitement as his daughter boarded an aeroplane on Thursday, June 12, 2025.

She was going to the UK to pursue her master's in engineering and technology, and her family took loans to fund her education.

Suresh said:

“After completing her college, she stayed with us... she wanted to study further in London. So we took out loans to support her education there.”

According to him, he was hoping that the family would be able to pay back the loans when she graduated and started earning money, a dream now cut short by the deadly crash.

Her cousin, Bharat Chauhan, said:

"She was the first member of our family to travel abroad... she was going to London. She completed her BTech from Udaipur and was going for MTech. But this tragic incident happened. Our family is deeply saddened."

Payal was also a lesson teacher to school children and had been using the money she was paid to take care of her family.

A relative said:

"The financial condition of the family is not good. Payal used to take care of the family by giving tuition to the students."

Meanwhile, the owners of Air India mentioned the amount they would pay to the families of the victims of the tragic plane crash.

Teenage boy killed by Air India crash

In a related story on Legit.ng, a teenage 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