The phrase “Mayday, Mayday!” was heard ringing across air traffic control a few seconds earlier than Air India flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed near Ahmedabad seconds after taking off. The plane, headed to London Gatwick, had 242 passengers and crew members on board when it dropped into the Meghani Nagar suburb a few minutes after take-off.
The plane had taken off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at approximately 1:38 PM IST. Two minutes prior to that, the pilot had made a Mayday call, which is a distress level call. Within a minute of the Mayday call, communication was lost, and the plane dived before crashing.
What Is a “Mayday” Call?
“Mayday” is a worldwide-recognized distress signal for voice communication to signal an emergency of life and death, being most commonly applied in aviation or at sea. Expressed from the French words “m’aidez” (literally “help me”), a Mayday call is repeated three times- “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday”-so that it can be clearly received and given priority on radio communications.
When a Mayday call is activated, all air traffic is cleared out at the same time. The flight is subsequently accorded maximum priority for emergency attention, whether returning to the airport, landing at the nearest runway, or being accorded on-ground emergency assistance.
In AI-171, the Mayday was activated after the plane climbed to merely 625 feet, well below normal climb altitudes. The plane stalled and dived uncontrollably, crashing to the ground, as reported.
