Locals first rush to plane crash site

Residents of South Delhi’s Shahbad Mohammadpur village near Dwarka Sector-8 were the first to launch rescue operations after the Border Security Force chartered aircraft crash.

Eyewitnesses told Deccan Herald that the aircraft failed to turn properly while attempting to return soon after takeoff from Indira Gandhi International(IGI) Airport. “The aircraft appeared to be unstable and took a U-turn. It was flying really low and brushed against a building at nearby Special Protection Group Complex,” said Mahesh, a local resident. Locals said the plane also narrowly missed a train near Shahbad Mohammadpur railway station and exploded in a huge ball of fire almost inside the airport.

Though 15 fire tenders from Delhi Fire Services and IGI Airport’s Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Services (ARFF) reached the spot within 10 minutes, ambulances took about 30 minutes. The aircraft’s pilot had asked IGI Airport’s Air Traffic Management for a priority landing after which full emergency was declared. The airport authorities also kept two approaching aircrafts on stand-by as it allowed priority landing to the BSF aircraft.

After initial probe, investigators said that the pilot had noted a snag soon after starting the engine. The plane also overshot the runway while taking off which may have caused some damage. The aircraft was told to return, but crashed while approaching runway 10 from Dwarka side around 9:50 am. “The plane had turned to the left after take-off and narrowly missed Shahbad Mohammadpur village. It then flew over a train track and clipped a tree before slamming into the boundary wall of the airport and crashing into a water treatment plant in the airport compound,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (South Western Range) Dependra Pathak.

Locals helped some labourers at the spot who sustained serious injuries, but failed to help the crash victims. “We saw the plane coming down and crashing near the wall where some labourers were working. It burst into flames and was completely wrecked,” said Ajay, a local resident.