Ranchi: The grief and pain of family members of seven people, who died in an air ambulance crash near Simaria in Jharkhand’s Chatra district, were palpable on Tuesday afternoon, as the bodies were handed over to them after post-mortem examination.
The Beechcraft C90 air ambulance, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, was en route to Delhi from Ranchi when it crashed on Monday evening in the Bariatu panchayat area of Simaria, located deep inside a forest, killing all seven onboard, including two pilots.
The post-mortem was conducted at Sadar Hospital in Chatra.
“The bodies have been handed over to family members after the autopsy,” a Health Department official told PTI.
Two teams from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) arrived in the state on Tuesday and began investigating the accident, an official said.
The aircraft took off from Ranchi airport at 7.11 pm and went missing around 7.30 pm. It lost contact with the air traffic control about 20 minutes after departure, another official said.
Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said inclement weather could be a possible reason behind the crash, though the exact cause would be ascertained after a detailed probe.
The deceased have been identified as Captain Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi and Dhuru Kumar.
As the bodies were handed over to family members, many turned inconsolable, expressing shock and disbelief.
Jharkhand Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar and Chief Minister Hemant Soren expressed grief over the incident, and said the state government will provide all possible support to the affected families.
In a statement, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the Beechcraft C90 aircraft (VT-AJV) was operating a medical evacuation flight on the Ranchi-Delhi sector when it crashed in Kasaria panchayat of Chatra district.
“The aircraft was airborne from Ranchi at 19:11 IST. After establishing contact with Kolkata at 19:34 IST, the aircraft lost communication and radar contact with Kolkata at approximately 100 nautical miles south-east of Varanasi,” it said, adding that there were seven people onboard, including two crewmembers.
An Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) team has been dispatched to the crash site.
According to the DGCA website, Delhi-based non-scheduled operator Redbird has six aircraft in its fleet, including the one that crashed.
Anant Sinha, CEO of Devkamal Hospital in Ranchi, told PTI that the air ambulance was arranged by one of their patients.
