All but one of the 242 people on board the London-bound flight died when it crashed into a residential area in Ahmedabad shortly after take-off.

AHMEDABAD, India (Reuters) -Lunch break at a doctors' hostel in India's Ahmedabad turned fatal for many in the dining area when parts of an Air India aircraft crashed through its roof as the plane hurtled to the ground moments after takeoff, killing more than 240 people.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, packed with 242 people on board, barely cleared the rooftops of the residential neighborhood just beyond the runway in the crowded Indian metropolis of Ahmedabad.

Air India flight AI171 crashed in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad. All but one of the 242 people onboard are believed to have died in the tragedy.

The deadly crash of an Air India flight carrying more than 240 people on Thursday arrives after years of attempts to turn around the country’s flag carrier — which had been plagued by tragedy and financial losses under prior state ownership.

By evening, the badly damaged corridors stood silent. Backpacks and half-eaten meals lay abandoned on tables where students had fled. The air was still thick with smoke, sirens, and the weight of what had just unfolded.