Awful mistake sees Air India victims’ families receive wrong remains

• British families of victims from deadly Air India flight 171 say they have received wrongly identified bodies due to a bungled repatriation scheme.
• A lawyer representing the bereaved said that some families were forced to abandon funeral plans after discovering the coffins contained different, unidentified remains.
• In some instances, multiple victims' remains were reportedly placed into a single coffin, requiring separation before burial or cremation.
• The misidentification came to light when Dr Fiona Wilcox, a senior coroner, attempted to verify identities using DNA matching with family samples.
• Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to discuss these errors with Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during the latter’s state visit to the UK.

IN FULL

British families of Air India crash victims ‘received wrong bodies’ in bungled repatriation