A Jinxed Plane Grounds the President
Episode - 6
Part - 2
Suddenly, the aircraft seemed to be coming down very fast. We felt emptiness in the stomach. Many were shouting in panic. In a couple of moments, the flight seemed to regain its balance. We heaved a sigh of relief. But, soon we experienced that peculiar feeling once again, as the aircraft lost altitude rapidly and swayed violently. Pillows and papers were flying all over. All of us were still wearing our seat belts. The plane seemed to be tilting to the right with the tail portion going up. The passengers crying and shouting in fright, clung to their seats like lizards.
The plane, which had hitherto been gliding sideways, seemed to hit something with a loud thud. The impact was stunning. Shutting my eyes and clutching the seat in front of me, I prayed to the lord. The plane did not halt. It was now moving with an angled serve. Suddenly, there was absolute silence and calm all over. The plane had come to a halt. I looked back at the rear portion from where the air was gushing in. To my shock, I noticed a big hole behind our seats. Dust and mud gushing into the aircraft through the hole, had already smeared the roof inside. I realised that the plane had crash-landed.
Confused and traumatised, I shouted. I unbuckled the seat belt and sprinted to the rear exit door. An air hostess and a passenger followed me. The jammed door would not open when we turned the handle. We kicked it with all our might. As the door opened, we realised that the plane was on the ground and it was raining. We almost walked out of the plane.
Fearing for life, all the passengers rushed out of the plane within a few seconds, shouting "Govinda, Govinda". Only then we noticed the billowing smoke emanating from the left wing of the plane. The fire that set off the smoke did not look ominous as the downpour had been dousing it. I noticed that I was not wearing spectacles and had only one 'chappal'.
Involuntarily, I rushed into the plane to search for my 'specs' even as some passengers shouted against my move. I found my 'specs' as well the missing chappal under the seat and rushed back. The vision was blurred because of the heavy downpour. All of us stood outside, getting drenched in the rain, but not daring to go in and sit. The rain stopped a few minutes later. The smoke emanating from the plane had also completely stopped. The sky had cleared and there was visibility. We noticed that the nose and the tail portions of the plane were lost somewhere. Parts of the propellers lay scattered. One of the engines was missing. We found ourselves in the bed of a partly dried up tank. There were telltale signs of the plane ploughing the ground and skidding for about 200-300 yards.
The rain- drenched soft soil had acted as a shock absorber. All the 29 passengers escaped unscathed, with none shedding even a drop of blood. Once again, I thanked Lord Srinivasa for His compassion. The confused pilots could not explain the crash. Before they realised as to what was happening, the plane was on the ground. All of us found it difficult to believe that we had survived a crash.
Ecstatic over our survival, the passengers congratulated one another, each trying to work out ones' own version of what had happened. As we were all locked in such discussions, some one spotted people approaching us. They were the additional SP Mr.Seetarama Rao and the TTD security officer,, Mr.Naidu, who had met me at the airport. The heavy gales and sharp showers had prevented them from getting out of the airport.
They observed a parked jeep moving away on its own and hitting a tree because of the impact of the gale. Airport officials informed them that the aircraft had lost contact with the control tower. There was the possibility of the plane crashing. They, along with airport officials, wasted no time and took off in the direction the plane had taken and reached the site of the crash. The plane had crashed in a tank file miles west of Renigunta airport. Seeing them was a great relief.
Being the senior most officer locally, and having access to resources as Executive Officer, TTD, I took the initiative and formed a security ring around the aircraft. I arranged for the transport of all the passengers to Tirupati in TTD vehicles and their overnight stay. I saw to it that all of them got their baggage. I ensured that the passengers called up their homes over phone even before the news was broadcast over radio. I informed the Chief Secretary and the President's office about my inability to come to Hyderabad.
The next day, accompanied by the Collector, Sub- Collector and the Superintendent of Police, airport officials and air crew, I visited the site of the accident. The pilot and the airport officials tried to reconstruct what had happened and why. Buffeted by high velocity gales, the aircraft travelling between two mountain ranges, had swayed in the skies defying the pilots attempt to control it.
The gales had pushed the plane off course and out of control. It glided sideways into the tank. The plane had brushed against the top of the trees on the tank bund. There was strip of 15-20 feet stretch of water within the tank adjoining the bund. The rest of the tank bed was dry. Clearing the trees on the tank bund and the waterline, the plane had crashed sideways in the tank bed.
The gales had pushed the plane off course and out of control. It glided sideways into the tank. The plane had brushed against the top of the trees on the tank bund. There was strip of 15-20 feet stretch of water within the tank adjoining the bund. The rest of the tank bed was dry. Clearing the trees on the tank bund and the waterline, the plane had crashed sideways in the tank bed.
OM NAMO SRINIVASAYA
OM NAMO NARAYANAYA
OM NAMO VENKATESAYA
Its a miracle that the passengers were saved without none getting hurt nor the plane burst into flames...
Read more details in the upcoming episode 7, "A Jinxed plane grounds the President , Part 3" to be published on 7th Jan 2017.
OM NAMO NARAYANAYA
OM NAMO VENKATESAYA
Its a miracle that the passengers were saved without none getting hurt nor the plane burst into flames...
Read more details in the upcoming episode 7, "A Jinxed plane grounds the President , Part 3" to be published on 7th Jan 2017.
7. A Jinxed plane grounds the President , Part 3
07 Jan 2017