Small aircraft crashes near Odisha’s Rourkela airstrip | Bhubaneswar News
BHUBNESWAR: A small aircraft made an emergency crash landing around nine kilometres from the Rourkela airstrip on Saturday after a technical fault was detected mid-flight, officials said. Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA), which confirmed the crash landing, said the pilot, upon noticing a technical snag in the system, attempted a belly landing on a grassland, saving all the passengers, although he himself sustained injuries. The severity of his injuries is not yet known. “The pilot went for a crash landing in a plain field 10 km before the runway. All six people, including four passengers on board, are safe. The pilot and co-pilot are alive. One of the pilots is injured. The plane slightly nosedived. There is minor damage to the fuselage, but the wings are intact. An investigation will be carried out soon,” said Transport Minister Bibhuti Bhusan Jena. The plane, which operates under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS), is a nine-seater, and including the pilot, seven people were on board. “The reason for the technical snag is yet to be ascertained,” said BPIA Director Prasanna Pradhan.
