A Beechcraft medical charter flight operated by Redbird Airways crashed dramatically in Jharkhand’s Chatra district, sparking a high-stakes jungle rescue for seven occupants traveling from Ranchi to Delhi. DGCA confirmed the Beechcraft C90 GT (VT-EJV) incident in Kasariya Panchayat on February 23.
The non-scheduled flight lifted off at 7:11 PM, maintaining brief comms with Kolkata before radar blackout at 7:34 PM over northwest Jharkhand near Palamu. Passengers comprised a patient under care of a doctor, paramedic, two attendants, pilot, and co-pilot, bound for Delhi arrival around 10 PM.
Crash reports originated from Simariya-area locals detecting thunderous noise and smoke from Karmatand’s wooded vicinity. Response teams from police, district admin, and NDRF equivalents face formidable obstacles: impenetrable forests and treacherous paths.
AAIB experts head to the site, backed by DGCA’s vigilant oversight via emergency dashboards. All agencies collaborate seamlessly, prioritizing survivor extraction.
This unforeseen calamity in medical aviation underscores protocol rigors and terrain perils. Preliminary probes lean on transponder trails and eyewitnesses, but definitive causes await black box recovery. The story evolves rapidly—stay tuned for survivor updates and inquiry revelations, as India watches with bated breath.