Ahmedabad Air India crash: Analysis of data from black boxes underway, says govt
Parts of an Air India plane that crashed on Thursday are seen on top of a building in Ahmedabad | AFP
Investigators probing the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad have started examining the data extracted from the black boxes recovered from the crash site, the government said on Thursday.
The June 12 crash is being probed by a multi-disciplinary team, headed by the chief of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).
"The team, constituted as per international protocol, is led by DG AAIB, and includes an aviation medicine specialist, an ATC officer, and representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) which is a government investigative agency from the state of manufacture and design, (USA), as required for such investigations," the civil aviation ministry said in a statement.
The Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) was recovered from the rooftop of a building on June 13 while the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) was found in the debris on June 16.
“Standard Operating Procedures were issued for their secure handling, storage, and transportation. The devices were kept under 24x7 police protection and CCTV surveillance in Ahmedabad,” the ministry said.
The black boxes were brought from Ahmedabad to Delhi by an Indian Air Force aircraft with full security on June 24. According to the ministry, the team led by DG AAIB with technical members from AAIB and NTSB began the data extraction process on the same day.
The Crash Protection Module (CPM) from the front black box was safely retrieved, and June 25, the memory module was successfully accessed and its data downloaded at the AAIB Lab.
“The analysis of CVR and FDR data is underway,” the ministry said, adding that these efforts aim to reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the accident and identify contributing factors to enhance aviation safety and prevent future occurrences.
Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft enroute to London Gatwick crashed into a medical hostel complex soon after takeoff from Ahmedabad on June 12, killing over 270 people, including 241 people who were onboard the plane.
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