|
There were seven survivors, some of whom miraculously
jumped out when the body of the aircraft split,
and fell into a valley below what is described
as the table-top runway in the hilly terrain.
Aircraft commander Z Glusica, a Serbian pilot
with British passport, and co-pilot S S Ahluwalia,
were among the dead along with four lady crew
members.
The aircraft, a new Boeing 737-800, had taken
off from Dubai as flight IX 812, around 0100 local
time, and attempted to land at Mangalore at 0435
h (0600 Indian Standard Time). The pilot tried
to abort the landing but the aircraft suffered
a tyre burst due apparently to hard braking, and
veered off slightly, hitting a radar pole.
The aircraft was nearly completely burnt.
The pilots had signaled no emergency and clearance
for landing was given in routine.
Both the pilots were experienced. The exact cause
of the crash would be determined from the aircraft’s
black box, which is actually red in colour and
stores all flight data. The black box was yet
to be recovered.
There were no foreigners on board.
According to Civil Aviation minister Praful Patel,
there were 160 passengers and six crew on board,
totaling 166.
One of the survivors of the crash, a four-year
old girl, died in hospital. Otherwise their number
would have been eight.
The mandatory Court of Inquiry has been instituted
by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Boeing announced that it is sending a team of
experts to assist in the probe “at the invitation
of the Indian authorities.”
Firemen and police personnel from the airport
quickly began rescue operations, only to come
across ghastly scenes of mangled bodies strew
over a large area. In no time, 25 ambulances and
over 20 fire tenders were involved in the frantic
operation.
One of the survivors, Ummar Farooq, said the
plane seemed to be on course for landing.
"Soon after it touched the runway, I heard
a sound and saw smoke quickly fill the plane.
Soon there was fire and all hell broke loose.
A crack appeared on the plane's body where I was
seated. I immediately jumped out. Two or three
people seated behind me also jumped out. I am
hurt in my knees and suffered burns on my hands
and face. As I fled from the aircraft, flames
engulfed it," he said.
Air India Express is the low cost arm of Air
India.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled the loss
of lives in the air crash, and cancelled a dinner
to mark one year of office of his government.
Financial assistance to the families of those
killed and injured was also announced.
|
