Air India Express Plane Crash: 18 People Have Lost Their Lives While Countless Have Been Severely Injured 

An Air India Express Boeing 737 flight from Dubai skidded off the runway at its destination Karipur Airport, Kozhikode, in the south Indian state of Kerala on Friday, August 7, and the aircraft split into two. The accidental skid was caused as a result of severe weather conditions and dangerously low visibility at Calicut International Airport in Kozhikode.

This crash has been deemed as India’s worst air disaster in over a decade.

The heavy rains caused the special repatriation flight, carrying 190 stranded Indians to their home state of Kerala, to skid off the runway and fall into a hillside gorge 30 feet below, nose-first, around 7:40 pm.

Recommended

Get Ready To Sip, Play, And Score Over 1 Million AED At Barasti’s Exciting Life-Sized Board Game Experience!Pay Just AED 66 For A Taxi Between Dubai & Abu Dhabi!Dubai Police Celebrates Indian Hero For Returning AED 100,000

18 people have reportedly lost their lives (including both the pilots) and hundreds onboard  have been severely injured during the fatal Air India Express passenger plane crash

Moreover, passengers allegedly heard a loud thud as the Air Indian Express Boeing 737 from Dubai overshot off the runway.

Prayers for the 191 passengers on board … Calicut 🙏
#AirIndiaExpress #airindia https://t.co/Rq2Jqjeek2

— Rahul Dev (@RahulDevRising) August 7, 2020

Senior pilot Deepak V Sathe reportedly died on the spot along with his 32-year-old co-pilot, Akhilesh Kumar

The nation will forever be indebted for their commitment towards their profession and humanity.

May Lord Venkateshwara give the strength to the families of these brave pilots as well as the families of all those who lost their dear ones in this tragedy.

Om shanti shanti..

— Satya Kumar Y (సత్యకుమార్ యాదవ్) (@satyakumar_y) August 8, 2020

A pilot who works for IndiGo said he shared specific safety concerns with authorities about the runway at the Karipur airport

In a viral Facebook post, pilot Anand Mohan Raj declared that the airport’s “runway guidance lighting system is very poor” and “braking conditions is not monitored regularly.” Adding that it’s a nightmare for pilots to land on a tabletop runway, especially at night and under heavy rain and wind conditions.

https://www.facebook.com/Captanandmohanraj/posts/10157955936756843

Pained by the plane accident in Kozhikode. My thoughts are with those who lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest. Spoke to Kerala CM @vijayanpinarayi Ji regarding the situation. Authorities are at the spot, providing all assistance to the affected.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 7, 2020

The Indian Consulate in Dubai assured all that the Consulate will remain open on Saturday, August 8 from 8am onwards to assist all who want any assistance to travel to Kerala or any info related to air crash incident. Adding that “We are with all the families of injured and deceased and will do our best to assist them.”

Air India Express has issued the following statement regarding the incident involving Air India Express at Kozhikode, Kerala. pic.twitter.com/Bvqg5dvaXr

— ANI (@ANI) August 7, 2020

In yesterday air mishap at Calicut, 18 people have lost lives including pilot and co pilot and 127 people are receiving treatment, few of them in critical condition, in the following hospitals. Our prayers with the families of deceased and injured. @MEAIndia @AmbKapoor @MoCA_GoI pic.twitter.com/pvFRXrCM1E

— India in Dubai (@cgidubai) August 8, 2020

Moreover, Indian civil aviation officials have confirmed that there was no fire on board the aircraft

It was nothing short of a miracle that the plane didn’t catch on fire, as the fuel had reportedly started leaking after the plane plunged down an embankment and broke up. In the case that the plane caught on fire, the death toll could have been much higher.

Flight #IX1344 made an overall of three landing attempts, #1 runway 10, #2 runway 28, and #3 runway 10 again when the accident occured. @flightradar24 pic.twitter.com/yB7RnAOqNC

— JACDEC (@JacdecNew) August 7, 2020

The world is praising the efforts of the locals who despite the struggles of the ongoing pandemic, plus heavy rains had helped in rescuing the injured passengers by rushing them to the nearest hospitals and donating blood to those in need

Locals in Kerala queued up till late night despite corona to donate blood for #AirIndia victims

Locals rushed their vehicles to Karipur airport as rain delayed the arrival of rescue teams.

Locals including cabbies pressed in their vehicles to take injured to hospital. Kerala👏

— Saahil Murli Menghani (@saahilmenghani) August 8, 2020

A number of Indian film celebs took to social media to express their shock at the tragic loss of lives in Kozhikode, Kerala.

Actors who shared their plight over the Air India flight carrying passengers from Dubai plane crash include, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Shah Rukh Khan, Prithviraj Suumaran, Tamannaah Bhatia and countless others.

Terrible news! Praying for the safety of all the passengers and crew onboard the #AirIndia Express flight. My deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones 🙏🏻

— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) August 7, 2020

Deeply saddened to hear about the #AirIndia plane crash. My heartfelt condolences to the families who lost their loved ones and sending my prayers for the speedy recovery and rescue of those injured.

— Tamannaah Bhatia (@tamannaahspeaks) August 8, 2020

Video visuals showed the aircraft’s nose smashed into a brick wall, with much of the middle of the plane pulverised

Videos and pictures also showed how the fuselage (the main body of an aircraft) was torn apart and was how the crash site was immediately surrounded by emergency personnel attempting to navigate in the dark.

Distressed to hear about the accident of Air India Express Aircraft in Kozhikode, Kerala.

Praying for the speedy recovery of all the injured passengers and crew.
Deepest condolences to the families who have lost their near ones in this tragic accident. pic.twitter.com/f2WPngvaBX

— Sonu Roy (@SonuRoy30379322) August 8, 2020

Lovin Dubai is deeply saddened to hear about the Air India plane crash and we share our heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased, including the two brave pilots who gave their lives to save many.