Air India plane crash LIVE: Modi meets ‘miracle’ British survivor of Gatwick-bound flight disaster

We have resumed our coverage this morning to bring the latest updates on the tragic Air India plane crash.

We have concluded our reporting for the evening of today’s tragic plane crash. Please return tomorrow for further coverage.

Britons feared dead after a London-bound flight crashed in western India include a family-of-three and a couple who ran a wellness business.

The captain of the Air India plane warned his engine was “losing power” just moments before crashing in a huge fireball.

Sumeet Sabharwal and his co-pilot Clive Kundar cried “mayday” as they lost altitude moments after taking off from Ahmedabad Airport.

Mr Sabharwal, who had 8,200 hours of flying experience, said he had “no thrust” and was “unable to lift” less than 650ft in the air before plunging into the ground.

Prayer services have been held across London following the Air India disaster.

Many have close ties to Gujarat, the state where the aircraft went down.

Vigils were held at the International Siddhashram Shakti Centre in Harrow, as well as the Hindu Neasden Temple in Brent.

A London MP has revealed some of his constituents had been notified of the deaths of loved ones in the Air India disaster

Bob Blackman, a Conservative MP for Harrow East and chairman of the 1922 Committee, said: “The position is that we’ve got four workers at temples in my constituency who’ve been notified that their relatives, very sadly, died in the air crash.”

“We also know that there are 169 Indian nationals on the flight who are almost certainly visiting family and friends in the United Kingdom, but we don’t know where they were visiting or who they were visiting, what part of their family was, so a lot of the work that’s going on right now is to identify who those people are and who they’re visiting.”

DNA testing of the victims of the Air India crash is currently underway, India’s home affairs minister said.

Amit Shah said the official death toll will only be announced once DNA testing is complete.

He said: “On behalf of the government of India, the government of Gujarat, and the prime minister, I express deep condolences to all those who lost their lives.”

Air India has confirmed 241 of the 242 people aboard flight AI171 have died following the crash in Ahmedabad, adding it “offers its deepest condolences to the families of the deceased”.

The airline confirmed the only survivor is British-Indian man Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who is being treated in hospital.

A spokesman said: “Our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of all those affected, their families and loved ones.”

We can now bring you more details on the death of Akeel Nanawaba, 36, his wife Hannaa Vorajee, 30, and their daughter Sarah, four, who were flying home from a five-day family celebration when the Air India flight crashed.

The young couple ran a global recruitment agency with offices in Gloucester and Ahmedabad.

Their business partner Shoyeb Khan Nagori told the Mail: “I had dinner with them last night. They were a lovely family and Akeel and his wife were extremely successful people.

“They were here to celebrate a family festival and to spend some time with Akeel’s father.

“Akeel was a really good man, I’m in shock, we were all having dinner together the night before.”

More passengers from the Air India crash who are feared to be dead have just been named.

Recently widowed Raxa Modha, 55, her grandson Rudra, two, and her daughter-in-law Yasha Kamdar are all believed to have been onboard the flight.

According to the Daily Mail, Mrs Modha was in India fulfilling the dying wish of her ill husband Kishor who had wanted to live out his last days in his homeland.

Following his passing in April, the mother-of-three was reportedly returning with her family to their home in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire.

Kishan Modha – the toddler’s father and Raxa’s son – was also understood to be in India, but was due to catch a flight tomorrow.

A family friend told the Mail: “It’s incredibly sad, the whole family is already grieving Kishor’s death.

“Kishan fortunately was getting on another flight, but we don’t know what has happened to the others.”