Guwahati, June 22 -- Erin Smith, La Trobe University

Viswashkumar Ramesh, a British citizen returning from a trip to India, has been confirmed as the only survivor of Thursday's deadly Air India crash.

"I don't know how I am alive," Ramesh told family, according to his brother Nayan, in a video call moments after emerging from the wreckage. Another brother Ajay, seated elswhere on the plane, was killed.

The Boeing 787-7 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college less than a minute after taking off in the city of Ahmedabad, killing the other 229 passengers and 12 crew. At least five people were killed on the ground.

Surviving a mass disaster of this kind may be hailed as a kind of "miracle". But what is it like to survive - especially a...