Pilot saved many lives at cost of her own: Praful Patel on Mumbai plane crash
Mumbai: Former civil aviation minister Praful Patel hailed the pilot of the chartered plane that crashed at a Mumbai suburb on Thursday afternoon and said she guided the aircraft away into an open area and saved several lives at the cost of her own.
Five persons were killed when a chartered aircraft, with two pilots and two aircraft maintenance engineers on board, crashed near a building in Ghatkopar in Mumbai.
The King Air C90 12-seater aircraft had taken off from the Juhu airport for a test flight and crashed shortly after 1 pm killing all four on board and a pedestrian.
Praising the pilot, Praful Patel tweeted, “Saddened to hear about the unfortunate incident at #ghatkopar as Charter plane crashes in an open area. Salute to the pilot who showed presence of mind to avoid a big mishap, saving many lives at the cost of her own life. #RIP to all the 5 Dead. My deepest condolences.”
Saddened to hear about the unfortunate incident at #ghatkopar as Charter plane crashes in an open area. Salute to the pilot who showed presence of mind to avoid a big mishap, saving many lives at the cost of her own life. #RIP to all the 5 Dead. My deepest condolences.
— Praful Patel (@praful_patel) June 28, 2018
The plane once belonged to the Uttar Pradesh government and was sold to UY Aviation, an official said.
Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu has directed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to conduct an investigation into the plane crash.
It is expected that the detailed enquiry will be done by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), the official told news agency PTI.
