Training Aircraft VT Juliet Disappears Shortly After Takeoff; Search Operations Underway in Chandil Dam.
A training aircraft from Alchemist Aviation, which took off from Jamshedpur’s Sonari Airport, went missing 15 minutes after takeoff on Tuesday, sparking a massive search operation.
JAMSHEDPUR – A training aircraft, identified as VT Juliet (VT Taj) from Alchemist Aviation, disappeared shortly after taking off from Jamshedpur’s Sonari Airport on Tuesday.
The aircraft, which was carrying a pilot and a trainee pilot, lost contact with Air Traffic Control (ATC) just 20 minutes after takeoff, leading to a day-long search operation.
Reports emerged throughout Tuesday suggesting that the aircraft may have crashed into the hills in the Patamda police station area, specifically around the Amda Hill region, with Barubeda-Bataluka being mentioned as the potential crash site.
In the evening, new information surfaced when two individuals, Rusu Majhi and Tapan Majhi, claimed to have seen the aircraft crashing into Chandil Dam near Piyaldih and Kaila Garh Shiva Temple in Nimdih.
The witnesses provided their contact numbers (9905447470 for Rusu Majhi and 6207806477 for Tapan Majhi) and shared the location of the sighting.
Following this, the district administration and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team launched a search operation in Chandil Dam on Wednesday to locate the missing aircraft and its occupants.
The aircraft had taken off from Sonari Airport at 11 AM on Tuesday, and its last known location was reported to be in the Nimdih area of Seraikela-Kharsawan district.
Despite extensive search efforts by the administrations of Seraikela and Jamshedpur throughout the day, no trace of the aircraft or its occupants has been found yet.
The current status of the pilot and the trainee pilot on board remains unknown.
The owner of Alchemist Aviation, Jamshedpur resident Mrinal Pal, acquired the company and has been involved in its operations.
The rescue operation is ongoing, with authorities determined to locate the missing aircraft.
