NEW DELHI: All seven people on board an air ambulance, including two crew members, were killed Monday night when the aircraft crashed in eastern India’s Jharkhand state, local authorities said Tuesday.
The Beechcraft C90, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, was en route from Ranchi, the state capital, to New Delhi, carrying a patient being transferred for medical treatment, according to the Chinese news agency Xinhua.
The crash occurred near Simaria in Chatra district, about 111 kilometres north of Ranchi. Authorities said the aircraft requested a deviation due to adverse weather and lost contact with air traffic control radar within 23 minutes of departure. Local media reported the plane went down in a forested area.
Police teams were dispatched to the scene, and the site was cordoned off. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed a search and rescue team had been deployed, and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau was on its way to determine the cause of the crash.
Last month, a similar chartered aircraft accident in western Maharashtra state killed a state leader and four others during landing at Baramati city.
