Ranchi, Feb 23 (UNI): A medical evacuation aircraft operating from Ranchi to Delhi crashed in Jharkhand’s Chatra district on Sunday evening with seven persons on board, including a critically injured patient, officials said.
The aircraft, a Beechcraft C90 King Air bearing registration VT-AJV and operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, went down in Kasaria Panchayat under Simaria police station limits in Chatra district.
According to preliminary information, the air ambulance departed from Ranchi at 1911 IST on the Ranchi-Delhi sector. The flight was in contact with Kolkata Air Traffic Control and was cruising at flight level 140, with a request to climb to flight level 180. The expected time of arrival in Delhi was 2200 IST.
At around 1934 IST, the aircraft lost communication and radar contact with Kolkata ATC, approximately 100 nautical miles south east of Varanasi. Shortly afterwards, local residents in Simaria alerted authorities about a suspected aircraft crash.
Police and district administration teams rushed to the spot and initiated search and rescue operations. Senior officials are monitoring the situation.
There were seven persons on board, including two crew members, the pilot in command and the co pilot. The others included a 41 year old patient identified as Sanjay Kumar, a doctor, a paramedic and two attendants. The patient, who had suffered 63 percent flame burns, was being shifted from Devkamal Hospital to Delhi for advanced treatment.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has been informed and a team is being dispatched to the crash site to conduct a detailed probe into the cause of the accident.
Further details are awaited as rescue operations continue.
