By Diana George
Months before the tragic Air India crash that claimed his life, former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was seen sitting inside the cockpit of a Boeing aircraft during a visit to an aviation institute in Ahmedabad. Photos of Rupani inside a decommissioned Boeing 737-200 cockpit at the Western India Institute of Aeronautics, located on the Indus University campus, have resurfaced online. The visit took place on April 8鈥攋ust two months before the London-bound Air India flight AI171 crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing 241 people onboard and 29 on the ground. Rupani was among those who died in the crash; only one person onboard is reported to have survived. In the photos, Rupani can be seen seated in the right-hand seat of the cockpit鈥攖ypically occupied by the co-pilot. He was also pictured standing at the aircraft door and interacting with Radhika Bhandari, the Dean of Aviation at the university. In a caption written in Gujarati and shared on Instagram during the visit, Rupani had posted, “Today, during a visit to the campus of ‘Indus University’ in Ahmedabad, I visited the Western India Institute of Aeronautics. During this visit, I saw models of aircraft like Boeing 737, Cessna, Zenith and Mig-21 and real aircraft.” He had further added, “During this, the conversation with the students of the Aviation Department became very energetic. I wish the Indian student to make his name bright on the global stage.” Captain Umang Jani, a faculty member at the institute who guided Rupani through the tour, recalled the former CM’s keen interest in aviation. “He was very curious and asked them how the aircraft works,” Jani told The Indian Express. “I tried to explain and answer his queries regarding the aircraft, the various controls in the cockpit and the functioning of the airliner.” Rupani, who served as Gujarat’s chief minister from 2016 to 2021 and was a Rajya Sabha MP from 2006 to 2012, had not originally planned to fly on June 12. According to reports, he had initially booked a ticket for the same AI171 flight on May 19 to visit his wife and daughter in London, with a return scheduled for June 25. He later cancelled that booking and opted to travel on June 5鈥攂ut cancelled that too. Eventually, he confirmed his travel for June 12 and was allotted seat 2D on the same ill-fated flight.