Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 13: While the death toll in the London-bound Air India plane crash near the Ahmedabad airport has reached 265, including 241 of the 242 passengers and crew members on-board the flight and 24 people on ground, many of them medical students and resident doctors, the “black box” of the ill-fated plane was recovered on Friday.
The hardy device which records vital data in an aircraft and play a vital role in unravelling the cause of a plane crash, the black box was recovered on Friday from the roof of the hostel mess building of B.J. Medical College where the flight crashed into on Thursday a minute after take-off from the Sardar Vallbhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), a division of the Ministry of Aviation, said.
Though called a black box, it is typically a bright orange device for easy visibility amid debris and underwater and analysis of the data available in the black box could provide vital clues about what triggered the disaster. A black box is a small device that records information about an aircraft during its flight. It helps in investigation of aviation accidents.
A large team of the AAIB assisted by 40 personnel from the Gujarat government found the digital flight data recorder (DFDR), or black box. The black box contains crucial information such as flight speed, altitude, engine performance, and cockpit audio, including communications between the pilots and air traffic control. It is built to withstand extreme temperatures, water, and severe impact, ensuring the survival of key data even in catastrophic conditions.
Constructed from highly durable materials like steel and titanium, the device has two main components: the DFDR and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR). The DFDR logs technical flight parameters, while the CVR captures audio from the cockpit, including pilot discussions and radio exchanges with air traffic control.
Barring a lone survivor, Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, a British national of Indian origin, no other passenger and crew member could be rescued as the aircraft carrying 1.25 lakh litres of fuel turned into an inferno after the crash. The former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was among those killed in the crash.
Air India has set up assistance centres in Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Delhi, and Gatwick (London) airports for the relatives and friends of the victims of the plane crash in Ahmedabad, the airline said on Friday. These centres are facilitating travel of family members to Ahmedabad, Air India said in a statement.
In light of the AI171 crash, an Operational Control Room has been activated at the Ministry of Civil Aviation to coordinate all details. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered Air India to carry out additional maintenance actions on all Boeing 787-8 and -9 aircraft equipped with Genx engines, including checks before departure.
Britain’s Indian community was understandably shaken by the tragic loss of lives in the London-bound Air India plane crash, with temples around the U.K. on Friday witnessing impromptu prayers and vigils in memory of the victims. The Ahmedabad-Gatwick flight route is a popular one for the diaspora with families in both countries, especially Britain’s estimated 600,000-strong Gujarati community.
The National Council of Gujarati Organisations UK (NCGO-UK) described it as a “dark and tragic day” for the community as it has been coordinating plans for a vigil in memory of the lives lost. “This is a dark and tragic day for our community. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and all those affected by this heart-breaking incident. The Gujarati and wider Indian communities across the United Kingdom and around the world are united in grief over this unimaginable loss,” noted the NCGO-UK.
The BJP and the Congress have cancelled all their programmes scheduled for Friday in view of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, party leaders said.
“All the programmes of the BJP, which were scheduled to be held on June 13 have been cancelled in view of the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad. Some events of June 12 were also cancelled,” Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary said.
State Congress chief Ajay Rai said all programmes of the Congress have been “cancelled and they have been changed to ‘shraddhanjali sabha’.” Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had cancelled all his public programmes scheduled for Friday following the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad.
