Jharkhand Engages Navy in Hunt for Missing Training Aircraft
Updated: Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 23:30 [IST]
A
training
aircraft
that
went
missing
shortly
after
take-off
from
Sonari
aerodrome
in
Jamshedpur
on
Tuesday
remains
unlocated,
officials
reported.
The
Seraikela-Kharswan
district
administration
in
Jharkhand
has
requested
assistance
from
the
Indian
Navy
to
find
the
two-seater
plane,
Deputy
Commissioner
Ravi
Shankar
Shukla
stated
on
Wednesday.
Representative
image
The
aircraft,
a
Cessna
152
owned
by
Alchemist
Aviation,
departed
from
Sonari
aerodrome
at
approximately
11
am
on
Tuesday.
It
is
suspected
to
have
crashed
into
Chandil
dam
in
the
district,
carrying
a
pilot
and
a
trainee
pilot.
Villagers
claimed
they
saw
an
aircraft
crash
into
the
water
body
on
Tuesday,
according
to
Superintendent
of
Police
Seraikela-Kharswan
Mukesh
Kumar
Lunayat.
Search
Operations
Intensify
Earlier
in
the
day,
a
six-member
team
from
the
National
Disaster
Response
Force
(NDRF)
based
in
Ranchi
conducted
a
search
operation
at
Chandil
dam
for
several
hours.
However,
only
a
pair
of
shoes
was
found,
as
confirmed
by
Sub-Divisional
Police
Officer
Chandil
Sunil
Kumar
Rajwar.
Official
sources
mentioned
that
help
was
sought
from
the
Eastern
Naval
Command
headquartered
in
Vishakhapatnam,
with
a
team
expected
to
commence
search
operations
from
Thursday.
East
Singhbhum
district
Deputy
Commissioner
Ananya
Mittal
noted
that
the
last
known
location
of
the
aircraft
was
near
Nimdih
under
Chandil
sub-division,
as
tracked
by
the
Air
Traffic
Control
of
Sonari
aerodrome.
A
joint
operation
involving
both
district
administrations
and
the
Forest
department
was
initiated
in
Nimdih
and
neighbouring
Purulia
district
of
West
Bengal.
Efforts
to
Locate
Missing
Aircraft
The
Seraikela-Kharswan
district
administration
has
sought
assistance
from
the
Indian
Navy
to
locate
the
missing
aircraft.
Deputy
Commissioner
Ravi
Shankar
Shukla
confirmed
this
request
on
Wednesday.
The
administration
hopes
that
naval
expertise
will
aid
in
finding
the
plane
and
its
occupants.
The
search
efforts
have
been
extensive
but
challenging.
Despite
several
hours
of
searching
by
NDRF
teams,
no
significant
evidence
has
been
found
apart
from
a
pair
of
shoes.
The
involvement
of
the
Eastern
Naval
Command
is
anticipated
to
enhance
the
search
operations
significantly.
The
missing
aircraft
incident
has
drawn
considerable
attention
due
to
its
mysterious
disappearance
shortly
after
take-off.
Authorities
are
working
tirelessly
to
uncover
any
clues
that
might
lead
to
locating
the
plane
and
understanding
what
happened
during
its
flight.
The
collaborative
efforts
between
various
agencies
underscore
the
seriousness
of
the
situation
and
the
commitment
to
resolving
it
promptly.
The
involvement
of
specialised
teams
highlights
the
complexity
and
urgency
of
finding
the
missing
aircraft
and
ensuring
safety
protocols
are
reviewed
to
prevent
future
occurrences.
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