Srinagar, June 13 -- On one side of the aisle, Dr Pratik Joshi leaned in toward his wife, Dr Komi Vyas. Across from them, their three children - Miraya, just eight, and her twin brothers, Nakul and Pradyut, five - sat in a neat row. They were dressed in sweatshirts, cheeks bright, eyes wide.

Pratik raised his phone and took a selfie.

They were finally together, the five of them, on the same plane, heading to London. It had taken six years to reach this moment - six long years of waiting, planning, saving, and hoping.

Then, just 32 seconds after takeoff, it was over.

Air India Flight AI-171 had barely cleared the skies above Ahmedabad before one of its engines failed. The plane tilted sharply, lost height fast, and slammed into a build...