Families of victims of the Air India plane crash have hired a US law firm to explore legal options, seeking answers and accountability.
Air India has confirmed that 241 people on board its London-bound flight were killed when the aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday.
GPS spoofing is considered to be a form of cyber attack that includes generating false GPS signals. The false signals result in misleading the navigation equipment which creates a significant risk to aircraft.
The flight was delayed post midnight because of a "technical glitch" and passengers remained seated inside all the while, an aggrieved traveller said in a video that has gone viral on social media.
Under the civil aviation ministry, AAIB is responsible for the classification of safety occurrences, involving aircraft operating in the Indian airspace into accidents and serious incidents.
'A Mayday at 600-800 feet followed by descent to 450 feet suggests the pilot still had control.'
While the peacetime stranding of a foreign fighter jet is rare in India, the F-35 -- a military asset of a foreign country with which India has strategic relations -- was being guarded by the Central Industrial Security Force, the agency responsible for security at Indian airports.
Faithfuls thronged the streets of Mumbai for immersion processions of Ganesh idols on Anant Chaturdashi, marking the end of the 10-day Ganpati festival.
How cockpit voices and flight data unravel what happened during an air crash.
"Decoding of the black box is going to give in-depth insight into what happened moments before the plane crash," Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said at a briefing in the national capital.
'The overall well-being of the pilots should be at the top of any airline's agenda in such situations.'
After a London-bound Air India aircraft crashed shortly after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday, the spotlight is back on India's history with aviation disasters.
The death of a young pilot and three fighter jet crashes prompt the question -- should there be more simulation training?
An IndiGo aircraft grazed the wings of an Air India Express plane at the Kolkata airport on Wednesday, leaving the wings of both aircraft damaged, officials said.
The US federal agency, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), responsible for the investigation of aviation accidents and significant transportation events in the country, on Friday (local time) issued a strong rebuke of recent media coverage made over the preliminary investigative report on the aftermath of the ill-fated Air India 171 crash that claimed 260 lives in Gujarat's Ahmedabad last month.
'... when the process isn't transparent, people will naturally raise questions. 'The AAIB's own press release says they had the black boxes by June 16.' 'Why wasn't decoding initiated until the 24th? What were they waiting for?'
"Vijay Rupani was going to London by the Air India flight," said senior state BJP leader Bhupendrasinh Chudasama.
The process of identification of victims by matching the DNA samples is currently underway, and the bodies will be handed over to their relatives once the process is complete.
'The AAIB will collect every single retrievable piece of the aircraft and transport it to a secure location -- usually a large hangar capable of housing a Boeing 787.' 'The entire aircraft will be laid out, each part marked and tagged, and practically rebuilt like a jigsaw puzzle.'
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is 'totally unbiased' and is carrying out a definitive and thorough rule-based probe to find out what exactly led to the Air India plane crash that killed 260 people last month, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said in Rajya Sabha on Monday.
'Data retrieval is just one part. Investigators also examine physical wreckage, pilot logs, and maintenance records.'
Two trainee pilots were on board and they sustained minor injuries, he said.
The nationality of the passengers onboard will define the minimum liability applicable to the airline operator as per the Montreal Convention, Prudent Insurance Brokers vice president (aviation & specialty lines) Hitesh Girotra said.
'Who tried engine relight?' 'If the first officer was the one flying at takeoff, the captain may have taken control immediately post-thrust loss.' 'But the AAIB report doesn't clarify any of this.'
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected to release its preliminary report this week on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, which resulted in the deaths of at least 260 people. The investigation is ongoing, with the help of foreign experts, and the black box and voice recorder data are being analyzed.
'Saudi-Pak defence pact is to anchor the defence and security of Saudi Arabia and not Pakistan, per se, with Islamabad being the junior partner.'
'The speed at which an aircraft lands or takes off, even a single object can work as a bullet.'
'The switch can't be shut off by an accidental brush of the hand, but needs effort, conscious physical action to operate it.' 'Was it the software of the aeroplane that caused the switch to turn off?' 'Was it the hardware of the aeroplane?' 'Was it both software and hardware put together?'
It added that as per international protocols under the International Civil Aviation Organisation, all information on the investigation will be provided by the government of India.
Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed in the devastating fire incident in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area and an Indian Air Force aircraft is on standby to bring back the mortal remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said on Thursday.
'The crash site must be secured because something small -- like a pipe or hydraulic line -- could hold a critical clue.'
The aircraft crashed into the Milestone School and College campus in Dhaka's Uttara area.
Addressing close to 700 employees and the leadership team across the Air India headquarters and Air India Training Academy in Gurugram, Chandrasekaran urged them to stay on course, terming the accident the most "heartbreaking" crisis of his career.
Modi personally spoke to Naidu and took stock of the Air India plane crash incident in Ahmedabad, an official at the civil aviation minister's office said.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has already launched a formal investigation into the incident.
They were asked to wait for 72 hours, but the deadline passed on Sunday and the wait seems endless.
A local resident of Meghani Nagar in Gujarat's Ahmedabad, who lives close to the site where Air India flight-171 crashed, recounted the horror and described the devastation and horror following the tragic incident.
An IndiGo flight from Delhi to Srinagar encountered severe turbulence after a sudden hailstorm. The pilot requested permission from Lahore Air Traffic Control to use Pakistani airspace to avoid the turbulence, but the request was rejected. The flight, carrying over 220 passengers, including Trinamool Congress MPs, landed safely at Srinagar Airport. The incident is being investigated by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
An Indian Air Force Jaguar aircraft crashed in Haryana's Panchkula district on Friday, with the pilot ejecting safely. The aircraft crashed in the hilly terrain of Panchkula district near Morni hills, with the pilot successfully maneuvering it away from any populated areas. No injuries or fatalities were reported on the ground. The aircraft was on a routine training sortie from Ambala when it encountered a system malfunction and crashed. The IAF has ordered an inquiry to determine the cause of the incident.
Two other MBBS students and three relatives of doctors are missing, she said.
