Mark Wright has apologised after being slammed for 'poor taste' post about planes after at least 260 killed in horror Air India crash.   

The Gatwick-bound plane carrying 242 passengers, including 53 British nationals, crashed just moments after take-off from Ahmedabad Airport in the northwestern Indian state of Gujarat.

On the same day, Mark, 38, posted a snap of himself, wife Michelle Keegan and their baby daughter Palma posing in front of a private jet, as he moaned about the leg room on standard planes.

Mark - who was returning from their first family holiday in Spain - wrote alongside the image: '1 day babe, for now we'll take row 26 with no extra leg room.'

Just moments later, he removed the post and shared a statement to his Instagram Stories, explaining that the post was scheduled. 

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Mark, who is famed for appearing on TOWIE and presenting TV shows including the now-defunct Bachelor UK, said: 'I apologise for a post I just put up on my page after today's heartbreaking events.

'I have posts from a holiday that are on the scheduled setting, which go out on future days I have set them for which was done last week. It's a horrendous coincidence that today's post was on such a devastating day. 

'Once I logged in to my Instagram and realised the post had gone out, I immediately deleted. My heart goes out to everyone who has been effected from today. I'm sorry for this mistake and any offence caused.'

Underneath the original post, one follower penned: 'Prob not the best day to post this when so many people lost their lives on a plane.'

Another added: 'Not really appropriate to put this up after today's plane crash.'

MailOnline has contacted Mark's representatives for comment.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner careened back down to earth in the densely populated Meghani area of the city just minutes after leaving the runway around 1.40pm local time (8.10am BST).

Terrifying CCTV footage showed the plane appear to lose control before it started rapidly descending with a high nose angle and landing gear deployed.

It plunged into the ground and exploded in a huge fireball, as a massive plume of black smoke billowed out from the crash site.

Aviation experts said the aircraft may have suddenly lost power 'at the most critical phase of flight' after takeoff.

All but one person aboard Air India Flight 171 are feared to have died in the tragedy.

MailOnline can reveal that among them were Akeel Nanawaba, Hannaa Vorajee and their four-year-old daughter Sarah, Fiongal and Jamie Greenlaw-Meek, Javed Ali Syed, his wife and two children and Raxa Modha, her grandson Rudra and her daughter-in-law Yasha Kamdar.

The sole survivor, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who was seated in 11A, is also British and told the Hindustan Times he had lived in London for 20 years.

The regional police chief said 'some locals would have also died', given that the plane smashed down into offices and accommodation for doctors close to a hospital.

So far, rescue teams supported by the military have recovered 204 bodies, with casualties from the plane and the area surrounding the crash.

The passengers included 159 Indian nationals, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and a Canadian. Eleven of those on board were children, including two newborns.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the crash was 'absolutely devastating' and that the investigation will 'take some time'.

Aviation experts say that the Boeing 787 Dreamliner may have suddenly lost power 'at the most critical phase of flight' after takeoff.

The possible causes are believed to include a rapid change in wind or a bird strike leading to a double engine stall.

Officials from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau are now at the scene to carry out an analysis of the wreckage and retrieve the stricken jet's black box.

Other video clips showed a huge cloud of black smoke filling the sky as distressed onlookers gather in the streets of the Indian city as chaos unfolds.

Footage taken from inside a hospital circulating on X shows medical staff rushing up and down corridors with stretchers as they prepare to treat passengers.

Shocking images also showed chunks of the plane's fuselage and tail protruding from a demolished building.

Firefighters at the scene doused the smouldering piles of debris with their hoses as photos and videos taken by horrified residents in Meghani showed a huge plume of thick black smoke emanating from the crash site.

The flight reportedly reached an altitude of just 625 feet before it began to descend, according to flight tracking service Flightradar 24, which declared the plane's transponder signal dropped just seconds after it left the runway.

'We received the last signal from the aircraft at 08:08:51 UTC, just seconds after take off,' it said.

India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation said the plane sent a mayday call moments before the crash. 

Air India's Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran shared a heartfelt statement that read: 'With profound sorrow I confirm that Air India Flight 171 operating Ahmedabad London Gatwick was involved in a tragic accident today.

'It is very disappointing that it is a Dreamliner as it is a state-of-the-art Boeing. We cannot rule out security issues. But this is all speculation on my part.'

'Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and loved ones of all those affected by this devastating event. At this moment, our primary focus is on supporting all the affected people and their families.

'We are doing everything in our power to assist the emergency response teams at the site and to provide all necessary support and care to those impacted.'

Gatwick Airport subsequently confirmed the flight that was due to land at 18:25 today had crashed on departure.