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SpiceJet technician crushed by landing gear flaps in Kolkata

The tragic incident took place when Rohit Pandey, 22, was carrying out a routine inspection on the SpiceJet Bombardier Q400 aircraft at the Dum Dum airport

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SpiceJet ground crew looks on as the rescuers pull out the body from the underbelly of the aircraft at the Dum Dum Airport in Kolkata on Wednesday
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A SpiceJet technician at Kolkata's Dum Dum airport was killed early on Wednesday after his head was stuck between the hydraulic door flaps of the main landing gear of an aircraft during maintenance, the airline said.

The tragic incident took place when Rohit Pandey, 22, was carrying out a routine inspection on the SpiceJet Bombardier Q400 aircraft at the Dum Dum airport. At around 1.45 am, the hydraulic flap in the underbelly of the aircraft "inadvertently" closed in around his neck without a warning, the airline said. Initial investigations have revealed that he may have died of suffocation.

It is reported that emergency personnel struggled to free Pandey's body and eventually had to break the hydraulic doors to free his body. A complaint of "unnatural death" was filed at Airport police station, while aviation regulator DGCA has launched a probe into the incident. Cops are attempting to ascertain if the hydraulic pressure may have been activated and how the deceased fell victim to it.

FREAK MISHAP CLAIMS 22-YR-OLD

  • The tragic incident took place when Rohit Pandey, 22, was carrying out an inspection on the SpiceJet Bombardier Q400 aircraft at the Dum Dum airport
     
  • At around 1.45 am, the hydraulic flap in the underbelly of the aircraft “inadvertently” closed in around his neck without a warning, the airline said 

Pandey was a resident of Poisar in Mumbai suburb of Kandivali and had passed out of the aircraft maintenance engineering course from a local aviation training institute only last year. He was living in Kolkata with his uncle and aunt after joining SpiceJet.

He was the mainstay of his family which comprises his mother and two sisters. When contacted, his sister Vandana said, "We were told of the incident at around 3 am when two of his friends called to tell us that my brother had died in a mishap. We weren't even informed by SpiceJet of this mishap. We are not fully aware what has happened yet, but were told that he was working alone at the time, which is the airport's fault.

SpiceJet, meanwhile, issued a statement expressing shock over the incident. "Extremely saddened to share that our technician Rohit Pandey passed away last night in an unfortunate incident at Kolkata airport. He was doing maintenance work in right hand main landing gear wheel well area of a Q400 aircraft which was parked in Bay No. 32 at airport. Inadvertently, the main landing gear hydraulic door closed and he got stuck in between the hydraulic door flaps."

— Zee Media Newsroom

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