Search operation for Indian Air Force’s AN-32 aircraft, which went missing with 29 people on board on Friday, continues uninterrupted for the third consecutive day. “We are asking the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) to help with the satellite imagery of the area so that we get more information”, said Vice Admiral H C S Bisht, Chief of Eastern Naval Command, Visakhapatnam.
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The Navy has deployed two P8i Long Range Maritime Patrol Aircraft, two Dornier aircraft and 12 ships with helicopters in the area to locate the missing plane.
Seventeen naval and coast guard ships are mounting day and night watch and various military aircraft have made 28 sorties till last evening over the search zone.
The AN-32 military transport plane was on a routine flight from the southern city of Chennai to Port Blair, capital of the remote Andaman and Nicobar islands, yesterday morning when it vanished from radar screens.
The search operation is continuing on a 24-hour basis and all resources at disposal are being used. The area indicated are being searched intensively by ships and aircraft. 29 people were onboard in the missing plane and their family members had started loosing hope for their loved ones.
“The sea state, however, continues to be rough, making the conditions challenging”, a statement by the MoD said.
While Indian Navy PRO Captain D.K. Sharma told the Indian Air Force and Navy and Coast Screw are involved in all-out search acts to find the Indian Air Force’s AN 32.
“We have received a complaint that Air Force’s AN-32 transport aircraft has gone missing”, a senior police official said Sunday.
Worries mounted for the authorities as time was running out and no positive signals emerged from the operations Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday undertook an aerial survey to personally monitor the search and rescue operations. Sources said recorded transcripts of the Chennai air traffic radar show the last known location of the aircraft at 151 nautical miles east of Chennai.
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Talking to media, Indian Air Force PRO Anupam Banerjee said the improved weather and clear sky is facilitating search and rescue operations. There were also 11 IAF personnel, two from Indian Army and one person from ICG.
