Wednesday, Jun 18, 2025 09:30 [IST]
Last Update: Tuesday, Jun 17, 2025 16:24 [IST]
Air travel is generally considered safe, convenient, and lately, affordable. Once a privilege of the rich and powerful, flying has now become accessible to the common man. With the rise in the number of airports, roads, expressways, and advanced automobiles, the desire to travel has been revolutionized.
Apart from offering convenience to ordinary citizens, aviation has become a major employer and a catalyst for swift connectivity, boosting the nation's economic prospects.
Yet, while air travel is now within the reach of students, job seekers, and families, concerns persist about the upkeep and maintenance of aircraft fleets. Recent air disasters have rightly brought these vital issues to the forefront.
DISMAL AIR SAFETY RECORD OF NEPAL
Nepal is among the most dangerous countries in terms of air disasters. It has one of the poorest aviation infrastructures globally. In 70 air accidents, over 900 lives have been lost. In one incident, the flight was piloted by a widow who trained to become a pilot after losing her husband in a crash.
In recent years, 68 people died in a Yeti Airlines crash, 18 in another (where the pilot survived miraculously), and 76 perished when a Buddha Air aircraft caught fire mid-air. The trekking paradise of Nepal witnesses, on average, two air mishaps every two years.
THE INDIAN SCENARIO
India is not far behind. Several accidents, mainly due to pilot error or fatigue, and some due to bird hits, have raised alarm. Mid-air collisions are rare—the last major one occurred over Charkhi Dadri, Haryana, in 1996.
Before the recent AI-171 tragedy, another Air India jumbo jet, AI-182, “Emperor Kanishka,” flying from Montreal to London, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in 1985, killing all 329 onboard (mostly Canadian nationals). The suspected cause was a mid-air bomb explosion, believed to have been planted at Montreal. Even after 40 years, full accountability remains elusive.
AHMEDABAD CRASH
The crash of Air India Flight AI-171, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, on June 12 near Ahmedabad claimed 241 lives, including 12 crew members. Miraculously, 39-year-old British citizen of Indian origin, Viswash Kumar Bhalaiya, survived. He literally walked out of the wreckage—while the dreams of many others were extinguished.
PRECURSORS TO SURVIVAL
History records rare survivals. In August 1987, a Detroit crash killed 154; only a 4-year-old girl survived. In another, a 12-year-old girl survived a Yemenia Airways crash that killed 152.
There have been around two dozen incidents over 80 years where 50 or more lives were lost, yet a single passenger survived.
THE MANGALORE CRASH
On May 22, 2010, Air India Express Flight IX 812 from Dubai overshot Mangalore’s runway, fell off a cliff, and burst into flames. Of 166 onboard, 158 perished. Three of the eight survivors recently recalled their “second birth.”
A NATIONAL SHAME
What happened on June 12 should shame us. In addition to passengers and crew, 24 medical students and staff of B.J. Medical College and Civil Hospital also died. The aircraft exploded into a fireball—its 1.25 lakh litres of fuel rendering bodies unrecognizable. The pilots had no time to dump fuel, a standard procedure in distress.
A MATERIALISTIC WORLD
The world is obsessed with innovation, consumption, and air travel. Boeing's Dreamliner series, in service since 2011, is allegedly safe but has reported issues: engine shutdowns, flight control failures, cabin smoke, and hydraulic leaks. Deliveries were paused whenever these surfaced.
Reportedly, Air India initially refused the Dreamliners due to faulty oxygen cylinders and misaligned parts.
Despite criticism from major media outlets, former U.S. President Trump backed Boeing. Should India ground Dreamliners, Boeing’s empire could be shaken.
BURNING QUESTIONS
The DGCA has now ordered urgent pre-flight checks for all Dreamliner 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft with GEnx engines. This includes inspections of fuel parameters, cabin air compressors, engine controls, and take-off data.
VIP MOVEMENTS: A DISTRACTION
VIP visits to crash sites or disaster zones often distract rescue teams. How can 700 CPMF personnel, six NDRF units, and RAF forces function efficiently amid such interruptions?
BLACK BOX RECOVERY
The Flight Data Recorder and Cockpit Voice Recorder have been recovered. These may reveal whether the crash was due to mechanical failure, pilot error, or both. But with only 40 seconds from takeoff to crash, the data may be limited. Decoding will take 10–15 days. Videos and airport surveillance footage may also offer vital clues. Fuel contamination is another possibility.
PROBE COMMITTEE
The Government of India has formed a multidisciplinary committee to probe the Ahmedabad crash. It will also propose Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for future prevention. Though it has a 3-month deadline, two months would be more reasonable. So far, eight of 33 Dreamliners have been inspected.
COMPENSATION
Air India may receive $80–115 million for the lost aircraft. Tata Group Chairman N. Chandrasekaran announced ?1 crore ex gratia for each deceased and free treatment for the injured. True to Tata tradition, he visited the site, followed by CEO Campbell Wilson.
But no compensation can replace lost lives, dreams, or families—like the five-member family from Banswara who hoped to settle in the UK.
Given the credentials of the AI-171 crew—Commander Sumeet Sabharwal with 8,200 hours and First Officer Clive Kunder with 1,100—pilot error seems unlikely. Tragically, destiny seemed unstoppable that day.
