Kin of passengers on same route admit to anxiety

Gajanand Pandya sat on a bench for three hours outside the airport till AI 159 to London took off Saturday. His daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter were on it, and he couldn’t bring himself to leave earlier - AI171 had crashed exactly a month ago, and it was something he just couldn’t shake off.

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Once news came in that the plane had taken off, Pandya got into a taxi and headed back home to Bhavnagar, about 150 km away. Dates don’t always matter but this one-month anniversary of the horrific air disaster that killed 241 onboard and 19 on the ground did.

“They came here to spend some time with us and went back today on the same flight. I stayed back at the airport because I was a little worried. Though I know that such plane crashes happen very rarely, it is natural for a father to have concern for his children. That is why I did not leave for Bhavnagar immediately,” Pandya said.