Thu Jun 12 09:00:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article based on the text you provided, along with a summary:
**Summary:**
An Air India flight carrying 244 people, including former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad Airport on Thursday afternoon. The plane, bound for London, went down in a residential area near the airport after the pilot reported a problem. Rescue efforts are underway, and the condition of the passengers, including Rupani, is currently unknown.
**News Article:**
**Air India Plane Crashes Near Ahmedabad Airport; Former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani Aboard**
**Ahmedabad, Gujarat -** A major incident occurred on Thursday afternoon when an Air India flight crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The flight, bound for London, was carrying 244 passengers and crew, including former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.
The Air India plane, carrying 232 passengers (230 adults and two infants) and 12 crew members, took off from runway 23 at approximately 1:39 PM. According to sources, the pilot immediately sensed a problem after takeoff and contacted Air Traffic Control. However, the plane crashed shortly thereafter in a residential area near Meghani Nagar, close to the airport.
Eyewitnesses captured the horrifying event on their mobile phones, showing the plane flying at a very low altitude before crashing behind a five-story building, resulting in a massive explosion and a large plume of black smoke.
Authorities have confirmed that former Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was on board the flight. Rupani, who served as Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2016 to 2021 and was a sitting MLA from Rajkot West, was reportedly traveling to London to visit his daughter. His name appears on the passenger manifest, and he was assigned seat 12 in the second row.
Emergency services, including fire brigades, ambulances, police, and teams from the NDRF (National Disaster Response Force), SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), and BSF (Border Security Force), were immediately dispatched to the crash site. Firefighters are working to extinguish the blaze, and rescue teams are extracting survivors from the wreckage. The condition of the passengers, including Vijay Rupani, remains unconfirmed at this time. Authorities are focused on rescue and recovery efforts and have yet to release further details about the cause of the crash. An investigation is underway.
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