An Air India Express flight on 7 August 2020 with 184 passengers, skids off the track into the valley, breaking into two. Due to heavy rain, while making a landing on the table top runaway, the Boeing 737 fell into 35 feet valley. The airplane made two failed attempts at landing before its third unfortunate attempt. The Kerela plane crash has put the entire county in a state of shock.
According to sources, till now 16 people are dead in the reports. While, around 35 people with injuries were in the process of evacuation. There were 10 infants among the 184 passengers. It is feared around 50 more people are still trapped.
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The flight was bringing over passengers from Dubai to Calicut. It was a part of the ‘Vande Bharat Mission’. Meanwhile, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is looking into the matter. A senior DGCA official said,
“Prima facie, the aircraft landed beyond the touch down point and fell into a valley. It has broken into two. We suspect some casualties. More information is awaited,”
Also, Air India came to the forefront through one of its spokesperson. According to Air India,
“Air India Express flight IX 1344 operated by Boeing 737 aircraft from Dubai to Calicut overshot the runway at Kozhikode at 7.41 pm Friday. No fire reported at the time of landing. There are 174 passengers, 10 infants , two pilots and five cabin crew on board. Rescue operations are on and passengers are being taken to hospital for medical care. We will soon share the update in this regard.”
Tweets
Also, several ministers of the state and center tweeted their condolence and expressed their grief.
Pained by the plane accident in Kozhikode. My thoughts are with those who lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest. Spoke to Kerala CM @vijayanpinarayi Ji regarding the situation. Authorities are at the spot, providing all assistance to the affected.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 7, 2020
Deeply distressed to hear about the tragic plane crash of Air India Express flight at Kozhikode, Kerala. Spoke to @KeralaGovernor Shri Arif Mohammed Khan and inquired about the situation. Thoughts and prayers with affected passengers, crew members and their families.
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) August 7, 2020
The heavy rainfall in the state has cause landfall killing around 15.
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