Six members of Indian family in Canada among 157 dead in Ethiopian Airlines crash

The "trip of a lifetime" to a safari park in Kenya turned into a nightmare for six members of a family from India in Canada who perished when the Nairobi-bound Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed minutes after take-off from Addis Ababa.

The Boeing 737 took-off from Bole International Airport on Sunday and lost contact six minutes later before coming down near Tulu Fara village outside the Ethiopian town of Bishoftu, killing all 149 passengers and eight crew on board, including tourists and business travellers.

The victims included Pannagesh Vaidya, 73; his wife Hansini Vaidya, 67; their daughter Kosha Vaidya, 37; her husband Prerit Dixit, 45; and their two children Anushka and Ashka Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown was quoted as saying by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

While the Surat-based Vaidya couple were Indian nationals, their daughter, husband and two children were Canadians of Indian-origin.

The family who were living in Canada, heading for a safari vacation, were about to experience "the trip of a lifetime" in Kenya when the tragic loss happened.

"This is an unbelievably tragic situation for this family," Brown said in a statement.

"As more details become known, I will provide a further update on how Brampton residents can assist this family. Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this time of sorrow and reflection."
"I lost my parents, I lost my sister. I don't have anyone else now."
"They thought March break was the perfect time for them to go over there, have fun," he said. "It was going to be a really great trip for everybody."
"I asked my dad why he wanted to go and he told me that in his life he wants to go one more time."