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Air India Express Flight 812
The accident aircraft on approach for landing in 2008[1]
Accident summary
Date 22 May 2010
Type Under investigation
Site Beyond runway 24 at Mangalore International Airport
12°56'48?N 074°52'25?E? / ?12.94667°N 74.87361°E? / 12.94667; 74.87361Coordinates: 12°56'48?N 074°52'25?E? / ?12.94667°N 74.87361°E? / 12.94667; 74.87361
Passengers 160
Crew 6
Injuries 8
Fatalities 158
Survivors 8
Aircraft type Boeing 737-8HG
Operator Air India Express
Tail number VT-AXV
Flight origin Dubai International Airport,
United Arab Emirates
Destination Mangalore International Airport, India
Air India Express Flight 812[2][7] was a Boeing 737-8HG, registration VT-AXV, on a scheduled passenger flight from Dubai, UAE to Mangalore, India.
On 22 May 2010, around 06:30 local time, it overran the runway while landing at Mangalore International Airport, falling into a ravine and catching fire with many passengers still fastened into their seats. 152 passengers and 6 crew members died, and only 8 passengers survived.
At the time the accident was the third deadliest in India's aviation history, after the 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision which killed 349, and the 1978 crash of Air India Flight 855 which killed 213. It marked the first major Indian accident since the July 2000 crash of Alliance Air Flight 7412 in Patna.[10] The accident is the fifth fatal crash involving a Boeing 737-800/900 aircraft, and the second instance of an aircraft overshooting the runway at Mangalore in wet conditions. This is the deadliest accident in 2010 so far.
Aircraft and flight crew
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-8HG, part of Boeing's 737 Next Generation series, with aircraft registration VT-AXV and manufacturer's serial number 36333, line number 2481. The aircraft first flew on 20 December 2007 with the Boeing test registration N1787B and was delivered on 18 January 2008.
The flight crew consisted of Zlatko Glušica, the captain, and H.S. Ahluwalia, the first officer. Glušica, a British national with over 10,000 hours of flying and over 7,500 hours of command experience, and Ahluwalia joined Air India in April 2009), have been killed. Both the pilots were based in Mangalore. The flight had six crew members.
Flight chronology
The plane departed from Dubai International Airport in Dubai. It crashed upon landing at Mangalore International Airport in Mangalore, India at around 06:30 local time (UTC+05:30).
Crash
Television footage showed debris to be on fire shortly after the crash. The plane could be seen lying on its belly as smoke arose from the wreckage.
After touching down, the plane failed to halt and travelled over a cliff. There was neither an indication nor a signal that there was any distress.
Initial reports suggested a tire burst before the aircraft hit the instrument landing system (localizer) antenna as it attempted a go-around. This ripped the underside of the fuselage open and eight people were thrown out of the aircraft. These eight were the only survivors. One of the eight initial survivors later died from injuries sustained in the accident.
It was reported that a survivor of the crash described hearing what he thought was a tire bursting as the aircraft touched down. "Then the plane veered off toward some trees on the side and then the cabin filled with smoke. I got caught in some cables but managed to scramble out," he said. Another surviving passenger claimed that the airplane hit a building before it broke into pieces and caught fire.[27]
Mangalore International Airport
An Air-India Express Boeing 737-800 at Mangalore International AirportThe Mangalore International Airport is located near Bajpe in south-west India, about 20 km (12 mi) north-east of Mangalore city centre.
The airport is situated in a hilly area and considered one of the most difficult airports to take off from and land on. The airport is one among the three airports in India that has a table top runway (others being Kozhikode and Lengpui) which creates an optical illusion that requires a very precise approach.[31] The area had also been experiencing heavy rains for the last two days due to Cyclone Laila.[15]
Victims
Apart from the six crew members, there were 169 names on the original passenger list but nine passengers did not board the flight. At least 152 bodies have been recovered from the wreckage. The majority of victims are believed to be from the districts of Kasaragod and Kannur in Kerala. The airport manager at Mangalore, Peter Abrahim confirmed that there were difficulties when trying to reach the plane. A total of 160 passengers and 6 crew members were on board. Some of the passengers were labourers working in the Persian Gulf states.
Air India Express Flight 812
The accident aircraft on approach for landing in 2008[1]
Accident summary
Date 22 May 2010
Type Under investigation
Site Beyond runway 24 at Mangalore International Airport
12°56'48?N 074°52'25?E? / ?12.94667°N 74.87361°E? / 12.94667; 74.87361Coordinates: 12°56'48?N 074°52'25?E? / ?12.94667°N 74.87361°E? / 12.94667; 74.87361
Passengers 160[2][3]
Crew 6[4]
Injuries 8
Fatalities 158[5]
Survivors 8[6]
Aircraft type Boeing 737-8HG
Operator Air India Express
Tail number VT-AXV
Flight origin Dubai International Airport, United Arab Emirates
Destination Mangalore International Airport, India
Air India Express Flight 812[2][7] was a Boeing 737-8HG,[8][9] registration VT-AXV, on a scheduled passenger