Latest news with #flight9525
The Hindu
21-07-2025
- The Hindu
Unvarnished facts: on the Ahmedabad air crash, AAIB investigation
The pushback by pilot bodies and the agencies that are investigating the Ahmedabad air crash, to the damaging leaks by sections of the media could well turn out to be a tepid attempt to staunch the flow. While these leaks have been dismissed as 'selective, unverified, irresponsible and baseless reporting' and triggered legal responses, they have, in a way, set a narrative going. There is no fathoming of what more the cockpit voice recorder could contain — especially relating to the troubling possibility of 'human intervention' in the crash of Air India flight AI171 on June 12. In this the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has to turn the spotlight on itself for its presentation of the key findings in its preliminary report. Its sparse detailing of an unusual 'transitioning' of the two separate fuel control switches, from 'run to cutoff' and back, a standalone snatch of conversation, reflecting unease and denial, between the crew in the unfolding disaster — that has been left open to endless interpretation — and, finally, a near blanket signing-off of no recommended actions concerning the aircraft type, the engine, and the manufacturers, only point to one direction — of the need for the release of a full and raw cockpit voice recorder transcript. In a legal analysis, if credible evidence of 'human intervention' does emerge, the investigation could shift, with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annex 13 inquiry, that is focused on safety, moving alongside a parallel criminal probe under domestic law. It must be noted that in 2015, following the Germanwings flight 9525 accident — a case of definite 'human intervention' — the Government of India was mulling 'mid-term' psychometric tests. Then Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma had said that psychometric tests should be carried out on pilots in India from time to time. He added that the Ministry would hold consultations with the regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, to facilitate the preparation of fresh rules keeping in mind the crash of the German plane. A senior counsellor at the Kolkata-based Indian Institute of Psychometry (founded in 1978) had also favoured having a repeat of psychometric tests 'if a person, especially a pilot or cabin crew, was undergoing mental stress or had had a tragedy on the personal front'. On July 17, in a letter of appeal, the AAIB had said that it would publish updates, as and when required, which would have content of technical and public interest. While it is understood that an air accident investigation would be meticulous, at the same time, the hope is that the AAIB clears the fog in the AI171 accident and presents the unvarnished facts — as promised in Parliament on Monday.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Families gather at site of Germanwings plane crash to mark 10 years since tragedy
Hundreds of people have gathered to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Germanwings plane crash that killed 150. Family members of the victims travelled to the scene of the crash in the French Alps on Monday morning, where flight 9525 was brought down by co-pilot Andreas Lubitz on the afternoon of 24 March 2015. The aircraft had taken off from Barcelona, Spain just hours before, bound for Dusseldorf, Germany. READ MORE: Man forced to choke his own dog with his forearms during horrific 45-minute mauling READ MORE: Major Madeleine McCann update as prime suspect Christian Brueckner may walk free in just days All 150 of those on board lost their lives in the tragedy, including a group of 16 students and two teachers from a German high school and a 37-year-old mother from Manchester, along with her seven-month-old baby. Other victims included a pair of acclaimed German opera singers and a member of an Argentine rock band. Most of those killed originated from Germany and Spain, however the death toll included people from 17 different countries in total. While relatives and close friends paid their respects at the site of the incident, hundreds gathered in the western German town of Haltern am See to remember the 18-member school group who lost their lives on the same day a decade ago. Christian Krahl, principal of the Joseph Konig high school, remarked on the importance of remembering the tragedy. 'We want to be close to those who are infinitely sad to this day,' he told German news agency DPA. The town's mayor, Andreas Stegemann, told the agency that the tragedy is a permanent part of the town's history. Wreaths were laid at the town cemetery, where some of the students are buried alongside a memorial which resembles a schoolroom. Elsewhere, in the French village of Le Vernet - which is located near the crash site - Carsten Spohr, the chief executive of Germanwings parent Lufthansa, laid flowers for the victims. Commemorations were also carried out at Barcelona airport and Dusseldorf airport. A book of condolences was made available at the latter to allow employees and travellers to write tributes. When investigators revealed that the crash was caused by the actions of the flight's co-pilot, many of the victim's loved ones reacted with shock and anger. It was later revealed that Lubitz had suffered from depression and sleeplessness in the months leading up to the incident, but was deemed fit to fly by his employer. A five-meter "Solar Orb" was erected at the site of the crash in 2017. Made up of 149 gilded aluminium plates, it is meant to represent all those who died on board except the co-pilot.
