Tragic Air Ambulance Crash in Jharkhand Claims Seven Lives
Fatal Incident in Jharkhand
On Monday, an air ambulance tragically crashed in Jharkhand's Chatra district, resulting in the deaths of all seven individuals on board. The aircraft went down near Simaria shortly after taking off from Ranchi airport at 7:11 PM, as reported by local authorities.
The air ambulance, operated by Redbird Airways Private Limited, was headed to Delhi when it lost contact around 7:30 PM. Chatra's Deputy Commissioner, Keerthishree G, confirmed the crash site was located near the Bariatu Panchayat area.
Superintendent of Police Sumit Kumar Agarwal noted that officials were alerted about the crash around 10 PM, but accessing the site proved challenging due to the difficult terrain.
Initial assessments suggest that a thunderstorm may have contributed to the crash, although a thorough investigation will determine the exact cause.
All seven victims, including two crew members, have been identified: Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi, and Dhuru Kumar.
Anant Sinha, CEO of Devkamal Hospital in Ranchi, explained that the air ambulance was arranged for a patient, Sanjay Kumar, who had suffered severe burn injuries. His family sought to transfer him to Delhi for advanced treatment.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed that the Beechcraft C90 aircraft, designated VT-AJV, was conducting a medical evacuation flight when it crashed in the Kasaria Panchayat area of Chatra district.
After taking off from Ranchi, the aircraft established communication with Kolkata at 7:34 PM but subsequently lost contact approximately 100 nautical miles southeast of Varanasi.
A search and rescue team from the district administration has reached the crash site, and a team from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is also being dispatched to investigate the incident.
This tragic event follows another recent aviation disaster, where former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar lost his life in a plane crash on January 28.