Plane Crash: Air India Owner Offers N216 Million to Victims' Families as Full Probe Underway

• Air India flight AI171 crashed seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport on June 12, killing all but one on board
• According to reports, the preliminary probe report of the crash is expected to be released next week
• Following the tragedy, Tata Group, which owns Air India, announced ex gratia compensation to the families of each person who died

Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering global affairs.

Ahmedabad, India - Tata Group, the owner of the ill-fated Air India plane, is offering an advanced payment of £17,200 and a goodwill (ex-gratia) gesture of £86,000 to the relatives of each person who was killed on June 12.

Legit.ng reports that the sum of the advanced payment and goodwill gesture totals N216,043,730 (interbank rate) in Nigerian currency.

The Air India plane bound for London in the United Kingdom (UK), came down moments after taking off from the western Indian city of Ahmedabad in June. Video footage showed it struggling to gain altitude and sinking back to the ground, where it hit buildings and exploded.

Fresh reports indicate that apart from advanced payment of £17,200 and ex-gratia, the airline may also be liable for further payments and has set up a compensation scheme for the loved ones of the 241 people killed in the tragedy, which also took the lives of 29 others on the ground, including five medical students.

On Thursday, July 3, The Standard UK reported that it had sighted a questionnaire sent by Air India which asks recipients to disclose whether they were “financially dependent” on the deceased individuals.

The media platform stated that the implication of this is that the bereaved will not receive the ex-gratia transfer unless they fill out the document revealing their financial circumstances.

Some families have even reported Indian officials banging on their doors trying to get them to sign the papers; otherwise, they will not be considered for compensation.

A spokesperson said the airline “sought to make the questionnaire as simple as possible to ensure compensation goes to the right person as swiftly and smoothly as possible”.

The official said:

“Understandably, there are some formal processes that must be followed but we are giving families all the time and flexibility they need and we want to support however we can.”

What is an ex-gratia payment?

According to Corporate Finance Institute, an ex gratia payment is made to an individual by an organisation, government, or insurer for damages or claims, but it does not require the admittance of liability by the party making the payment.

An ex gratia payment is considered voluntary because the party making the payment is not obligated to compensate the individual. In Latin, “ex gratia” means “by favour.”

Latest on Air India crash investigation

Authorities in India are investigating whether sabotage was behind the Air India crash in Ahmedabad that killed 260 people earlier this month.

Murlidhar Mohol, India’s minister of state for civil aviation, said:

“The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has begun a full probe. It is being assessed from all angles, including any possible sabotage.”

The black box, which also includes a Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR), remains in India.

Read more on the Air India disaster:

• Man who was in the same hospital as Air India crash survivor shares heartbreaking question he asked him
• Air India: Man who looked closely at plane's seats shares worrisome observation he made
• Air India: Doctor who first treated lone survivor Ramesh shares observation he made about him

Air India CEO speaks

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the chief executive officer (CEO) of Air India, Campbell Wilson, shared new insights about the pilots of the crashed Boeing Dreamliner.

In a letter to the victims' families, Wilson stated that Captain Sabharwal was highly-experienced.

Wilson disclosed that the late captain logged over 10,000 hours of flying, and his co-pilot had 3400 hours of flying experience.

Source: Legit.ng