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Air India Jet With More Than 180 Passengers Skids and Cracks in Half Air India Jet With More Than 180 Passengers Skids and Cracks in Half
(about 2 hours later)
NEW DELHI — An Indian jetliner trying to land in a torrential downpour skidded off the runway, crashed into a wall, tumbled into a nearby valley and split in half, killing at least 10 people and injuring scores. NEW DELHI — An Indian jetliner trying to land during a torrential downpour in southern India on Friday night skidded off a slick airport runway, crashed into a wall, tumbled into a valley and split in half, killing at least 11 people and injuring scores.
The Air India Express flight was a special flight full of more than 180 returning from Dubai to Kozhikode, a city in southern India and The Air India Express flight was a special repatriation flight carrying more than 180 passengers from Dubai to Kozhikode, a city along India’s southwestern coast in Kerala State. Many aboard were Indians who had been stranded in the Persian Gulf during the coronavirus pandemic and had been waiting for months to return home.
Indian media showed injured passengers lying in the hallways of a hospital. According to news reports, a pilot and two passengers died, and 30 to 40 passengers were hospitalized with injuries. Indian media showed injured passengers lying on their backs in the hallways of a hospital. According to news reports, the captain of the plane, a Boeing 737, was among the dead, they said more than 120 people had been injured.
It has been raining heavily in that area for the past week and aviation experts said it appeared that the plane slid off the runway after having landed. Some Indian outlets said that as many as 17 people had died.
Indian media showed images of the jetliner’s fuselage cracked in half but there appeared to be no fire. Rescue crews were dousing the plane with water as rain continued to pelt down. All week in Kerala the monsoon rains have been pouring down. Earlier on Friday, at least 15 people were killed by a massive landslide in the state when a hillside of rock and sludge crashed into a workers’ hostel on a tea plantation.
“There was not much loss of life,” M.B. Rajesh, a former member of Parliament from Kerala, told the NDTV news channel. The weather had been so bad that the India Meteorological Department had declared a red alert in three of Kerala’s districts, including the area where the crash happened.
“Considering the severity of the accident, the loss of life was limited,” he added. “That is a relief.” “There is no doubt that extreme weather conditions contributed to this,” Shashi Tharoor, a prominent member of Parliament from Kerala, said in a televised interview. “During our monsoons, things can be very, very difficult.”Aviation experts said that it was hard to slow a plane on a wet and slick runway. According to a statement by Air India Express, the plane “overshot” the runway, which was on a flat hilltop, with deep gorges on either side. Pilots call such landing areas “tabletop” runways.
Indian media showed images of the jetliner’s fuselage cracked in half but there appeared to be no fire. The plane’s nose had been badly smashed and wet chunks of debris lay scattered over a grassy field.
Air India Express said that there were 184 passengers, including 10 infants, aboard, along with four cabin crew members and two pilots. The chief pilot, who was reported to have died, was described by Indian news media as a decorated former military officer who had served as a test pilot for the Indian Air Force.
The plane skidded off the runway around 7:40 p.m. Rescue crews were still dousing the plane with water more than an hour later. Huge crowds surrounded the wreckage as injured passengers were pulled out, their eyes dazed, their faces wet. The rain continued to pelt down.
“Considering the severity of the accident, the loss of life was limited,” M.B. Rajesh, a former member of Parliament from Kerala, told the NDTV news channel. “That is a relief.”
He said that all passengers had been evacuated by 9:15 p.m.He said that all passengers had been evacuated by 9:15 p.m.
Officials said the heavy rains were likely a prime factor in the crash of the plane, a Boeing 737. Flight radar suggested it may have circled the airport before trying to land. Flight radar suggested the plane may have circled the airport before trying to land. Survivors told local news media that the aircraft bounced up and down many times before landing.
“There is no doubt that extreme weather conditions contributed to this,” said Shashi Tharoor, a prominent member of Parliament from Kerala. “During our monsoons, things can be very, very difficult,” he said. The runway abuts the edge of a valley, where the plane ended up.
The runway at the airport abuts the edge of a valley, where the plane ended up. “The valley is about 50 feet deep and it’s no surprise that the plane, after skidding, broke in two,” Mr. Tharoor said
“The valley is about 50 feet deep and it’s no surprise that the plane, after skidding, broke in two,” Mr. Tharoor added. “Imagine people anxious to return to their homeland from Dubai. And now for this to happen, it’s obviously shaken every soul in Kerala to the core.” Every year, a large number of flights to Saudi Arabia for the hajj pilgrimage use the Kozhikode airport, which supports a considerable number of international flights, particularly to the Gulf countries. This year, though, Saudi Arabia has strictly limited attendance to the hajj because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The heavy rains in Kerala have been especially treacherous. At least 15 people were killed earlier on Friday by a massive landslide that sent a hillside of rock and sludge crashing into a tea plantation. The India Meteorological Department had declared a red alert in three districts, including the area of the plane accident.
A large number of Haj flights to Saudi Arabia use the airport every year and it supports a considerable number of international flights, particularly to the Gulf countries. This year, though, Saudi Arabia has strictly limited attendance to the gathering because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The airport has more international flights than domestic. It has a long runway,” Mr. Tharoor said.“The airport has more international flights than domestic. It has a long runway,” Mr. Tharoor said.
In 2010, an Air India flight from Dubai carrying 166 people crashed into a heavily wooded valley moments after landing at an airport in southern India, killing 158 people. The plane in that crash was also a Boeing 737. In 2010, a similar but much more tragic accident happened at another hilltop airport just 150 miles up Kerala’s coast, in Mangalore. An Air India Express flight from Dubai carrying 166 people skidded off the runway, tumbled into a valley and burst into flames. The plane in that crash was also a Boeing 737 and 158 people died.
Like many countries, India has severely cut back on international air operations during the pandemic. But, at the same time, India has initiated an enormous rescue operation to bring home stranded Indians using its national carrier, Air India, its naval ships and countless clerks, health workers, police officers, sailors and diplomats. (Air India Express is a subsidiary of Air India).
More Indians have been stranded in Gulf countries than in any other region of the world and the Indian embassies organizing the flights have given priority to citizens with medical emergencies, pregnant women, students and people who have lost their` jobs.
Mr. Tharoor said that many Indians on the flight Friday night had been anxious to come home.
“And now for this to happen?” he said. “It’s obviously shaken every soul in Kerala to the core.”
Hari Kumar contributed reporting