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No clue of missing IAF plane on day 3, satellite imagery sought

Chennai/Vishakhapatnam: As the arduous operation to trace the IAF’s missing AN32 aircraft with 29 people on board stretched into the third day on Sunday, the search and rescue team is now seeking satellite imagery to find any clue of the plane that lost contact over the Bay of Bengal. 

"There is no sign of the plane as yet," a senior defence official said. 

At least 18 navy and coast guard ships including a submarine, and eight aircraft like P 81, C 130 and Dorniers are involved in the round the clock operation to search for the Port Blair-bound transport plane which went missing after it took off from the Tambaram air base near Chennai at 8.30 am on July 22. 

Inclement weather was posing a major challenge in the operation. The authorities are now seeking satellite imagery of the area. 

"The search operation is continuing on a 24-hour basis and all resources at disposal are being used. 

"We have also sought satellite information," Eastern Naval Command chief Vice Admiral HCS Bisht said in Vishakhapatnam. 

"The depth of water there is about 3,500 metres and in some place it is even more. As the depth increases, challenges also increase," he said, adding that the weather was rough and it was raining. 

He said the family members are being updated on a regular basis. 

Meanwhile, airforce authorities have lodged a formal complaint with Tamil Nadu police over the missing AN-32 aircraft. 

"We have received a complaint that Air Force’s AN-32 transport aircraft has gone missing," a senior police official said on Sunday. 

"The complaint was lodged last night with Selaiyur police," he said. 

"The complaint says that 29 personnel on board AN-32 and the aircraft have gone missing. Among the missing personnel is one person from Tamil Nadu," the official said. 

The complaint has been lodged for legal purposes. A similar complaint was filed when Coast Guard’s Dornier aircraft went missing last year. The wreckage of the CG 

Dornier aircraft and bodies of its crew were later found off Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu. 

The Russian-made workhorse made the last radio contact at 0846 hours, 16 minutes after take off, on Friday. 

Worries mounted for the authorities as time was running out and no positive signals emerged from the operations Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar yesterday undertook an aerial survey to personally monitor the search and rescue operations.

Soldier from Belthangady on missing IAF aircraft

Family members of Yekanath Shetty (48), who was one among the occupants of the ill-fated IAF AN-32 aircraft that went missing over the Bay of Bengal from Chennai on Friday, were inconsolable as they received the news about his presence in the aircraft here on Friday.

The family, residing at Guruvayanakere House, Kuvettu village, in Belthangady taluk of Dakshina Kannada district, received calls from the Army on Friday around 4 p.m. stating that Mr. Shetty was on the aircraft, said Jayanthi Shetty, his wife. Ms. Shetty told reporters that her husband left home on July 16 after a 10-day leave.

Yekanath Shetty

He called home on Thursday night saying that he would not be going to Andaman (where he is posted presently as junior commissioned officer with the Defence Service Corps), as the doctor has scheduled an operation for him on July 30. Mr. Shetty had come home on leave for the same reason, she said.

Ms. Shetty, who collapsed at one point unable to withstand grief, was admitted to Belthangady government hospital.

Mr. Yekanath’s father, Krishna Shetty, too served in the armed forces. The family, hailing from Kutharpadavu near Mangaluru, moved to Guruvayanakere about 11 years ago after building a house there. Mr. Yekanath served the Army’s 7 MEG Regiment for 24 years and rejoined the service corps after his retirement, his relative Shashiraj Shetty said.

While his daughter Ashita is studying B.Com II year at SDM College, Ujire, his son Akshay is in Class 10. Ms. Shetty works as a teacher in SDM High School, Ujire

No Clue Of Air Force’s AN-32 Plane As Search Goes Into Third Day

Chennai: The massive hunt for an Air Force’s AN-32 plane that went missing in stormy monsoon weather over the Bay of Bengal on Friday with 29 people on board entered into a third day on Sunday.

The plane left the Tambaram air base near Chennai at 8.30 am on Friday and was to have landed at Port Blair around 11.45 am. It fell off the radar at 9.12 am, 280 km east of Chennai. It made the last radio contact at 8:46 am, 16 minutes after take-off, when the pilot reported that "everything is normal".

Air Force and Navy officials said the search was continuing but no signs of any wreckage had so far been found.

As many as 18 Navy and Coast Guard ships including a submarine, and eight aircraft like P 81, C 130 and Dorniers are involved in a massive search operation in the Bay of Bengal, about 150 nautical miles east of Chennai, where inclement weather appeared to be a hurdle.

An Indian Air Force AN-32 aircraft went missing on way to Port Blair (File photo)

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who was in Chennai yesterday, undertook a two-hour aerial survey of the area of operation. He instructed that more resources could be diverted for the purpose if necessary.

The sea is very rough and there is thick cloud cover in the area, sources said, adding he has directed all Commanders to be in touch with families and provide them information that may be required, they said.

The aircraft, which had six crew members and eight civilians (family members), may have plunged rapidly from an altitude of 23,000 feet, said an officer.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was briefed on the search operations of missing An-32 aircraft

The Indian space agency will be using its Radar Imaging Satellite (RISAT) that can see through the clouds to locate the missing plane, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman AS Kiran Kumar told IANS.  

Meanwhile, family members of those on board were eagerly waiting for news about the aircraft.

The son of one of the men on board the missing plane has a message for fellow Indians.

The Navy sent 13 ships to the region at full speed. (File Photo)

"I want to request all my fellow Indians through NDTV to pray for my father and all people on board. I feel my father is safe. I want all of you to pray they all come back unharmed," said Ashutosh Singh, son of Bhupath Singh, who was on the missing AN-32 aircraft.

There are more than 100 Russian-made AN-32s in service with the IAF. It is an aircraft that can fly for up to four hours without refueling and can operate in all weather conditions.