The Antonov AN-32 military transport craft, which took off at 12.27 pm carrying eight crew members and five passengers, was last heard from at 1 pm
An Indian Air Force plane with 13 people onboard went missing on Monday afternoon some 33 minutes after taking off from Assam's Jorhat airbase for Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in Arunachal Pradesh's Mechuka Valley, near the border with China.
Though the possibility of a crash has the force concerned, there has been no confirmation.
The Antonov AN-32 military transport craft, which took off at 12.27 pm carrying eight crew members and five passengers, was last heard from at 1 pm, the IAF said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who was at Siachen Glacier when he was informed about the situation, said he had spoken to Vice Chief Air Marshal Rakesh Singh Bhadauria about it. "He has apprised me of the steps taken by the IAF to find the missing aircraft. I pray for the safety of all passengers on board," he said.
The Air Force said in a statement, "The aircraft last contacted ground agencies at 1300 hrs. Thereafter, there was no contact." Since the aircraft did not reach the destination, "overdue actions were initiated by the IAF."
The statement further said that the force had deployed all available resources to spot the plane. "C-130, AN-32 aircraft, two Mi-17 of IAF and Indian Army ALH helicopters were launched to locate the missing aircraft. Some ground reports were received on possible location of a crash site," it stated.
But when helicopters were routed to the spot, no wreckage was sighted.
The IAF said that it was coordinating with the Army, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, and various government and civil agencies to locate the missing aircraft.
It was learnt that aerial and ground search operations were to continue through the night.
‘An’ Again, 3 Years Later
- Antonov AN-32 craft took off from Assam for Arunachal near China border on Monday
- In Jul 2016, India launched its largest search op with 16 ships, one sub after an AN-32 with 29 onboard went missing over Bay of Bengal, but in vain
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