7 killed in air ambulance crash in India’s Jharkhand state

Published
0
Police and security personnel work at the site where the Beechcraft air ambulance crashed, killing all seven people on board, in Chatra, Jharkhand, India on February 24, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a video. — Reuters
Police and security personnel work at the site where the Beechcraft air ambulance crashed, killing all seven people on board, in Chatra, Jharkhand, India on February 24, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a video. — Reuters
Police and security personnel work at the site where the Beechcraft air ambulance crashed, killing all seven people on board, in Chatra, Jharkhand, India on February 24, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a video. — Reuters
Police and security personnel work at the site where the Beechcraft air ambulance crashed, killing all seven people on board, in Chatra, Jharkhand, India on February 24, 2026, in this screengrab taken from a video. — Reuters

All seven people on board a Beechcraft air ambulance that crashed in the Indian state of Jharkhand on Monday were killed, officials said on Tuesday, including two crew members, the patient and his relatives.

The Beechcraft C90 plane, operated by Redbird Airways, took off from state capital Ranchi but requested a change to its flight path due to weather, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on Monday.

The aircraft subsequently lost communication and radar contact, the regulator said.

Rescue and medical teams rushed to the site of the crash, which local media said was deep inside a difficult-to-access forest.

“The team of doctors found them, and declared them dead,” local administrative official Keerthishree G told reporters, adding that two of the seven people killed were crew members.

“We have pulled out the bodies and sent them for post-mortem and further investigation,” the official said.

Keerthishree G is the deputy commissioner of Chatra district, where the crash occurred during a thunderstorm.

A team from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has been dispatched to investigate the cause, the regulator said.

Most air crashes are due to a combination of factors and can take at least a year to investigate, according to industry experts.

Relatives of the patient, Sanjay Kumar, told reporters he was injured in a fire and was initially undergoing treatment in Ranchi.

“His condition had become worse so we were taking him to Delhi by air ambulance,” said Vijay Sau, his older brother.

Last month, a Learjet 45 charter aircraft crashed killing all five people on board, including the deputy chief minister of India’s wealthiest state of Maharashtra and two members of his staff.


Additional input by AFP

Opinion

Editorial

State of denial
Updated 18 Oct, 2026

State of denial

If the Taliban regime commits to preventing groups based on its soil from attacking neighbouring states, the process of normalisation and regional integration of Afghanistan can begin.
Suffering in silence
18 Oct, 2026

Suffering in silence

TOO many Pakistani children have nowhere to turn when abused online. An estimated 1.5m internet-using children aged...
Export imperative
18 Oct, 2026

Export imperative

THE government’s efforts to boost Pakistan’s external sector through diversified financing, higher foreign...
No talks
Updated 17 Oct, 2026

No talks

The government should understand that the PTI’s protest march and its reaction to it will look like nothing more than a storm in a teacup.
Strengthening LGs
17 Oct, 2026

Strengthening LGs

THE ECP has done well to refuse to allow the Punjab administration to push the local government elections to April....
Lesser citizens
Updated 17 Oct, 2026

Lesser citizens

Interfaith harmony will prevail when the message to end bias is conveyed from the pulpit, alongside efforts to punish zealotry.