New Delhi: The Kozhikode International Airport witnessed worst aviation mishap on Friday evening. The airport was issued a show cause notice by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in July 2019 after an audit revealed ‘significant’ safety concerns.
The notice, pointed out several safety concerns, including ‘excessive rubber deposits’, which, the notice said, ‘can be dangerous for safe landings in the heavy rains’ that Kerala was witnessing at the time, by reducing friction.
Air India Express Dubai- Kozhikode IX-1344 flight, carrying 190 people on board from Dubai under the Vande Bharat Mission, skidded off the runway at Karipur Airport in Kozhikode after which the DGCA’s report had also found cracks and stagnating water on the runway, with the regulator giving the Airports Authority of India (AAI) 15 days to respond to it.
Based on the DGCA’s findings, its report inferred that ‘critical parts of the airport required to conduct safe operations are not being maintained in accordance with the rules’.
Names of crew members on board
The names of the other four crew members onboard are Dashra Shilpa Katare, Akshay Pal Singh, Lalit Kumar and Abhik Biswas.
“We are with all the families of injured and deceased and will do our best to assist them,” the consulate tweeted on August 7 evening.
It said the consulate will remain open on August 8 to share any information related to the crash.
India’s newly-appointed Consul General to Dubai Dr Aman Puri said that there were all kinds of Indians on-board the IX 1344 flight, which took off from Dubai and fell into a valley 35 feet below before broking into two portions.
“Some were visa cancellation and expiry cases, some were travelling to meet their family members, some having lost their jobs, and some were travelling on medical emergencies,” Puri told the local media.
The Indian consulates in Dubai and Sharjah have activated five helpline numbers to provide information to the family members of the deceased and the injured passengers.
