High-Level Panel Holds Review Meet To Discuss Air India Plane Crash

A high-level committee meeting was convened in Delhi today to review the circumstances surrounding the recent air crash tragedy. The closed-door meeting, which lasted for nearly two hours, focused on identifying systemic gaps and charting a roadmap for corrective measures.

The committee is being headed by the Union Home Secretary, and includes senior officials such as the Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, a member of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, the Relief Commissioner of Gujarat, a member of the National Disaster Management Authority, and the Director of the Forensic Science Laboratory, Gujarat. 

Senior representatives from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Air India, the India Meteorological Department, and the National Disaster Response Force also participated in the meeting.

Sources said the committee will thoroughly investigate the root causes of the crash. This includes examining technical malfunctions, human error, weather conditions, non-compliance with safety protocols, and other potential factors.

The panel will also recommend critical improvements, including a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure to prevent similar incidents in the future. 

Emphasis will be placed on suggesting policy reforms, operational upgrades, and changes in training procedures to enhance aviation safety and improve disaster response mechanisms.

Sources added that the committee may also visit the crash site to conduct a ground-level assessment and gather key inputs for the investigation and policy recommendations.

The panel, chaired by the home secretary, is expected to submit its report in three months.

The Air India Ahmedabad to London flight had crashed soon after the take-off on Thursday afternoon. Of the 242 people on board the plane, only one person survived. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner is the first big air rash in the country in decades.  

A separate investigation into it is being carried out by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, which is looking into the technical aspects of the crash.