Nearly three weeks after an air ambulance crashed in , the second engine of the aircraft was recovered Sunday from a forest near the crash site, officials said.
According to district officials, the engine was found in a forest area in the same block where the crash had occurred near Kanshiatu village under Simaria police station limits.
Chatra Deputy Commissioner Keerthishree G told The that the engine was spotted by local villagers who had gone to the forest to collect woods and mahua flowers.
“Some local women had gone to the forest to collect mahua and they found the engine there,” the said, adding that it was located in a forested area near the crash site.
She said an investigation team is expected to visit the site again following the recovery. The team belongs to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), which probes aviation accidents in the country.
Simaria police station sub-inspector Surya Pratap said the engine was recovered from a location about one kilometre away from the crash site.
“This is a major development that could help the investigation team determine the exact reason behind the plane crash. The engine was missing earlier and we had already appealed to villagers to inform the administration if they found it,” Singh said.
He added that teams from the AAIB and the forensic department are currently in the area conducting inspections.
“The inspection is going on. The recovered parts will be brought to the police station and the investigation team will take them for further examination,” he said.
The air ambulance, which was flying from Ranchi to Delhi, crashed on the evening of February 23 in the Patharpania forest area near Kanshiatu village in Chatra district. All seven people on board including two pilots, a patient suffering from burn injuries, two attendants, a doctor and a paramedic.
Following the accident, debris of the aircraft was collected and brought to Simaria police station before being transported out of the district for further examination.
SI said on why it took more than two weeks to recover the engine said that the location is too remote and extremely forested. “We requested the villagers to support us in finding the engine which we were searching for since the day the incident occurred. Finally, after 21 days, the locals found it. We have also informed the DGCA and other investigation teams. This will help the inspection teams to go to the cause of the accident,” he said.
With the recovery of the second engine 21 days after the crash, investigators are expected to examine it for possible clues about the cause of the accident as part of the ongoing probe.
