In its probe report into the June 17 accident in West Bengal's Darjeeling district that left 10 persons dead, including the loco pilot of the goods train, the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) also recommended implementation of the Automatic Train-protection system (KAVACH) on top priority.
"The team of senior officials have found that the mechanical parts of the interlocking system were opened. Normally, these parts get broken after an accident due to the heavy impact of the locomotive and coaches," a source, close to the inspection team, said.
Chairperson of the Railway Board Jaya Varma Sinha said that Kavach, an automatic anti-collision train protection system, is being planned for the route.
The aircraft that took off from Kathmandu at 10:30 am crashed into the Seti river gorge, killing all four crew members and 68 passengers. One person on board the aircraft is still missing.
'The pilots and the ATC both did not follow the protocol'
Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari and Air Marshal Manvendra Singh who headed the tri-service investigation into the crash apprised Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the findings of the probe on Wednesday.
The report, released a little over a year after the deadly crash of the Air India Express plane, said the "probable cause of the accident was the non adherence to SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) by the PF (Pilot Flying)".
The DGCA official who wrongly assigned the code of Antonov AN-32 -- an aircraft used by the IAF -- to the SpiceJet aircraft has been suspended, report Arindam Majumder and Aneesh Phadnis.
The Mangalore air-crash has proved, if proof were needed, that Indian air space remains a dangerous place for air travelers. The first reports have indicated that the accident may have been caused by pilot error. This is because pilot behaviour has been under investigation in a number of cases -- which could have led to accidents but fortunately didn't -- in recent months. The Directorate of Civil Aviation revealed in April that it was investigating 15 near misses.
The preliminary findings of the Directorate of Civil Aviation points that there was no technical snag on the aircraft and they attribute the crash to a human error. A DGCA team, which is conducting investigations, has found that the crash occurred due to a pilot or human error.
Rediff.com takes a look at some of the disastrous air crashes.
Russia has informed India that the crash of a MiG 29K fighter jet, which was manufactured for the Indian Navy, was due to pilot error and there was no need for it to ground its planes in India.
'There cannot be anyone like Air Marshal Keelor -- he was so difficult to emulate.' Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd) salutes War Hero Air Marshal Denzil Keelor PVSM, KC, AVSM, VrC who passed into the ages last month.
Disorientation and delayed response by the pilot -- who reportedly dozed off -- and ignoring his co-pilot's warnings during landing may have led to the Boeing aircrash in Mangalore that killed 158 persons, according to an inquiry report.
Revealing that 70 per cent of incidents involving airplanes are due to pilot error and most are due to non-compliance of procedures which are "avoidable", Kanu Gohain, director general of DGCA, said the aviation regulatory body has stepped up measures to ensure strict compliance of operational procedures.
What does a fighter pilot feel as he takes off and lands his battle-ready aircraft? Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd) takes you through those emotions.
IAF station commander Raman Kumar Singh said the aircraft of a private airway, coming from Patna to take back two passangers, skidded into slushy ground as it touched base but the pilot Raj escaped unhurt.
An 'incorrect' flight path, missing the touchdown point, a brake failure, pilots' fatigue and judgmental error are various reasons being cited by technical experts for the plane crash at Mangalore. The Boeing 737-800 of the Air India Express on Saturday overshot the runway and its 90 metre long spillover area, plunged into a ravine and burst into flames, claiming 158 lives.
43 houses were destroyed and several children are reported to have been among the dead.
'To avoid accountability and cover the mismanagement of the head of the department, they create this kind of sabotage theory.' 'If it's a sabotage theory, then the higher-level officials can go scot-free.'
The mishap occurred during a sortie as part of the rehearsal for AeroIndia.
Official data showed that 11 accidents occurred in 2011, nine in 2012, eight in 2013 and two till March and in most of these cases, the choppers suffered substantial damage, apart from the 52 fatalities.
With a few flicks of the end-stub, the ink disappears almost instantaneously, allowing users to write, delete and repeat with no worries, making it perfect for secret messaging, crossword puzzles and everyday use, it added.
'Because of the callous attitude of the railway administration, they don't take care of safety.'
31 passengers are confirmed dead while 12 are still missing, said officials.
Drug major Cipla on Tuesday said it has launched drone-powered deliveries of critical medicines - cardiac, respiratory and other essential chronic therapies - to hospitals and pharmacies across Himachal Pradesh in partnership with Skype Air Mobility, a Gurugram-based drone delivery company. Cipla is the first among large Indian pharmaceutical companies to adopt drone-based deliveries to facilitate expedited supply to stockists in remote areas, it claimed. The Mumbai-based firm said the use of drones will support the on-time delivery of its medicines to chemists and clinics in remote areas, and minimise risks of affecting cold chain products due to temperature excursions.
The plane lost contact with air traffic control officials and landed in Mumbai after around four hours.
A thorough probe is underway, none of the authorities has so far talked about any possibility of a sabotage.
'In the Mahabharat, when faced by an enemy, Yudhishtir, the eldest Pandav, had quipped that 'When it comes to external enemies, we are 105, (100 Kauravs and 5 Pandavs)'.' 'It is time modern politicians heed this ancient wisdom,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'Imagine what will happen when a train running at 128 kmph moves onto a track that is meant to have only a speed less than 30 kmph!' 'Naturally, it will derail, and the coaches will go for a tailspin.'
Preliminary investigations have revealed that a signal was given to Coromandel Express to enter the main line but it was taken off and the train entered the loop line, where it crashed into a goods train parked there.
The black box, comprising the flight data recorder (FDR) and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), of the ill-fated Mi-17V5 helicopter of the Indian Air Force was recovered from the crash site on Thursday.
Russia has blamed "human factor" for the crash of a Sukhoi 30 MKI fighter aircraft in October last year that led to the grounding of the entire fleet of India's frontline fighter plane for a month, a charge denied by the Indian Air Force.
The research found that 50% of the people were receiving either nothing or less cash than they were entitled in lieu of the subsidised grains that were stopped under the pilots starting from September 2015 till May 2016.
'Kavach', which literally means armour, is being promoted by the railways as the world's cheapest automatic train collision protection system.
The Tu-154 model plane, which belonged to the Russian defence ministry, crashed shortly after take-off from the southern city of Adler.
Don't look for a single cause -- a combination of factors is needed to bring down any plane, says Shakti Lumba
A total of Rs 30,000 crore was allocated for five years to Air India by the United Progressive Alliance government in its second term.
Electronic devices installed along tracks provide train signals to a computer fitted in the locomotive. If a driver goes over the designated speed, a dashboard in front of him gives a red alert sign at first. Even after this, if the train continues its journey, the train's brake is automatically applied.
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