Vishwash Kumar Ramesh said he thought he was dead when the plane crashed into a building, before realising he was alive and escaping the wreckage.

Speaking from his hospital bed, the 40-year-old told DD News the plane felt like it was “stuck in the air” shortly after takeoff before lights began flickering green and white, adding: “It suddenly slammed into a building and exploded.”

0:39 Narendra Modi meets sole survivor of Air India plane crash at a hospital in Ahmedabad – video

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner struck a medical college as it crashed in a fireball on Thursday, killing the other 241 people onboard.

It is one of the deadliest plane crashes in terms of the number of British nationals killed, and the first involving a 787.

Ramesh said: “I can’t believe how I came out of it alive. For a moment, I felt like I was going to die too but when I opened my eyes and looked around, I realised I was alive. I still can’t believe how I survived.”

Ramesh told the broadcaster: “When the flight took off, within five to 10 seconds it felt like it was stuck in the air. Suddenly, the lights started flickering – green and white.

“The aircraft wasn’t gaining altitude and was just gliding before it suddenly slammed into a building and exploded. At first, I thought I was dead. Later, I realised I was still alive and saw an opening in the fuselage.

“I managed to unbuckle myself, used my leg to push through that opening, and crawled out. I don’t know how I survived,” he said. “I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me … I walked out of the rubble.”

The crash site was visited by the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, on Friday, with video footage showing him talking to Ramesh in hospital.

At least five medical students were killed and about 50 injured. There are fears the number of people killed on the ground could rise.

Investigations are continuing into the cause of the crash.

A British couple, Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek, who ran a spiritual wellness centre, were said to be among the dead.

The Gloucester Muslim Community group offered “sincere and deepest condolences” after Akeel Nanabawa, his wife, Hannaa, and their four-year-old daughter, Sara, were reported to be among the victims.

Raj Mishra, the mayor of Wellingborough in Northamptonshire, called for people to come together as he announced the deaths of “Raxa Modha, infant Rudra Modha, and Ms K Mistri” in his constituency.

Aviation experts have speculated about the possible causes of the crash, from both engines failing – possibly due to a bird strike, as happened in the “Miracle on the Hudson” in 2009 – to the flaps on the aircraft’s wings not being set to the correct position for takeoff.

The Air India chief executive, Campbell Wilson, visited the area, according to the BBC, but did not take questions from the media.

The Foreign Office said any British nationals requiring consular assistance, or who had concerns about family or friends, should call 020 7008 5000.

After the tragic Air India crash yesterday, a Thai singer has opened up about his haunting experience surviving a similar ordeal almost 30 years ago

Thai singer Ruangsak Loychusak survived a plane crash in 1998

Following the news that one man survived the horrific plane crash in western India yesterday, a Thai singer and actor has revealed that he also made it out of a crash alive – after sitting in the exact same numbered seat.

Ruangsak Loychusak, 47, survived the 1998 Thai Airways plane crash that killed 101 passengers after diving into a swamp. He was in seat 11A – the same number as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, the British man who was the sole survivor of the Air India tragedy on June 12.

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In 1998, The Thai Airways plane was carrying 132 passengers and 14 crew members – and only 45 people survived.

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There were only 45 survivors of the Thai Airways crash

Ruangsak told the MailOnline: “The lone survivor of the plane crash in India was sitting in the same seat number as me, 11A. I want to offer my condolences to all those who lost loved ones in the tragedy.”

He went on to describe how the trauma impacted his life after the terrifying ordeal, and said that he had trouble flying for a decade. “I would struggle breathing, even though the air circulation was normal. I avoided speaking to anyone and always stared outside the window, blocking anyone from closing it to maintain my sense of safety,” he explained.

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Air India crash piles fresh turmoil on beleaguered Boeing in devastating new low READ MORE:

Ruangsak also said that he can still remember the sounds, smells, and the taste of the swamp water, almost three decades later.

The Air India flight yesterday took off from Ahmedabad at 9.08am and was set to land later that day in London Gatwick. However, within minutes, it crashed into a dining hall for medical students in a residential area.

The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner was carrying 242 people including 53 Brits, 169 Indian nationals, seven Portuguese people, and one Canadian. While at first, the city’s police chief told AP that there appeared to be no survivors, it was soon reported that Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, was alive.

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Shortly after the crash, he told the Hindustan Times: “When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital.”

Ramesh was on the flight with his brother, who was seated in a different row. He said: “We visited Diu. He was travelling with me and I can’t find him anymore. Please help me find him.”

Another of Ramesh’s brothers, from Leicester in the East Midlands, said the family were “shocked”. He continued: “I last spoke to him yesterday morning. We’re devastated, just devastated. He said: ‘I have no idea how I exited the plane.’”

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The UK’s prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, said in a press conference: “The images and news from India is absolutely devastated and I speak for the entire country in saying our thoughts are with each and every one of those involved. There will be British and Indian families across the land who are absolutely impacted by this and our thoughts first and foremost are with them.”

He confirmed that an investigation team has been deployed, led by the foreign secretary. He said they were working with the Indian authorities to establish the facts of what happened, and would provide an update as soon as possible.

“I would say to all families, friends of anybody affected to please contact the foreign office for further information,” Starmer said.

Plane investigators are today hunting for a black box that may reveal the truth behind the Air India crash that killed all but one of the 242 people on board.

Authorities are investigating one of India’s worst aviation disasters after flight 171 plummeted to the ground in the densely populated Meghani area of the city, striking a doctors’ hostel, after it departed from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has visited the crash scene in Ahmedabad and then a hospital to meet with families of the victims.

Incredibly, British father Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, managed to survive the crash after he escaped through an emergency exit.

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The British man who was the sole survivor of Thursday’s Air India plane crash said he managed to escape the wreckage through an opening in the fuselage. “I managed to unbuckle myself, used my leg to push through that opening, and crawled out,” Vishwashkumar Ramesh told Indian state media DD News. Mr Ramesh, 40, was in seat 11A on the London-bound Boeing 787 flight when it went down shortly after take off in Ahmedabad, western India on Thursday. Air India said all other passengers and crew were killed – including 169 Indian nationals and 52 British nationals. More than 200 bodies have been recovered so far, though it is unclear how many were passengers and how many were from the ground.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Mr Ramesh said the lights inside the aircraft “started flickering” moments after take off. Within five to 10 seconds, it felt like the plane was “stuck in the air”, he said. “The lights started flickering green and white…suddenly slammed into a building and exploded.” The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a building used as accommodation for doctors at the Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College and Civil Hospital. But Mr Ramesh, from Leicester, said the section he was sitting in landed near the ground and did not make contact with the building. “When the door broke and I saw there was some space, I tried to get out of there and I did. “No one could have got out from the opposite side, which was towards the wall, because it crashed there.” The cause of the crash is not yet known. Officials say one black box has been recovered from the crash site, according to news agencies, which will be able to provide further information for investigators. Video shared on social media showed Mr Ramesh walking towards an ambulance with smoke billowing in the background. He told the Indian broadcaster he could not believe that he came out of the wreckage alive. “I saw people dying in front of my eyes – the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me,” he said. “For a moment, I felt like I was going to die too, but when I opened my eyes and looked around, I realised I was alive. “I still can’t believe how I survived. I walked out of the rubble.”

On the morning of 12 June, a flight took off from Ahmedabad in western India travelling to London Gatwick, but lasted just moments in the air before crashing down in a residential area, killing 241 of the 242 people on board.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the events as ‘devastating’, while Indian PM Narenda Modi said: “We are all devastated by the air tragedy in Ahmedabad. The loss of so many lives in such a sudden and heartbreaking manner is beyond words. Condolences to all the bereaved families. We understand their pain and also know that the void left behind will be felt for years to come.”

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Modi travelled to hospital recently to meet with British man Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who miraculously survived the crash in his 11A seat, which was close to the plane’s emergency exit.

The plane fell to pieces after crashing (Siddharaj Solanki/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

And the victim, who walked away from the crash after somehow escaping with cuts and bruises, has now shared more details on what happened from his perspective.

Speaking to Indian broadcaster Doordarshan, Mr Ramesh said: “Everything happened in front of my eyes, I still can’t believe myself how I came out alive. For a little while, I thought I was also going to die. But when I opened my eyes, I realised I was alive.

“So I tried to escape. I pulled out the belt from under my seat and tried to escape. Then I managed to do it. I saw others and the air hostess in front of me who couldn’t escape.”

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He claimed that the emergency door on the plane came off when the plane crash-landed. The 40-year-old Brit also suggested that the plane felt like it had ‘got stuck’ as pilots tried to up the speed before heading straight into a building.

Mr Ramesh added: “When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran.

“There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital.”

Tragically, his brother was also on the flight and is now presumed dead, but there is a least some solace for the family that he was able to survive with just a burned arm from the fiery crash.

It has been revealed that he called his family just moments after the tragedy, with his younger brother Nayan saying: “I last spoke to him yesterday morning. We’re devastated, just devastated.

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“He said I have no idea how I exited the plane. He video called my dad as he crashed and said ‘Oh, the plane’s crashed. I don’t know where my brother is. I don’t see any other passengers. I don’t know how I’m alive, how I exited the plane.'”

Meanwhile, a man who was on the same plane hours before it crashed has shared a ‘haunting’ video in which he claims that nothing on the flight was working.