New image of IAF’s AN-32 crash site shows how close aircraft was to clear hill, but failed

A new image of the Indian Air Force’s AN-32 aircraft crash site in Payum Circle of Siang district in Arunachal Pradesh on Tuesday shows how close the plane was to clear the hill but could not, probably due to blockage of view due to clouds. The first image of the aircraft crash site was released on Tuesday. The aircraft had gone which missing with 13 people on board June 3 after taking off from Assam's Jorhat. It was spotted by a Mi-17 helicopter of the Indian Air Force, at a height of around 12,000 feet.

Indian Air Force: #AN32Aircraft crash site in Arunachal Pradesh showing the probable crash point of the aircraft. It shows how close the plane was to clear the hill but could not, probably due to blockage of view due to clouds. pic.twitter.com/o3jRQ6gU4T

— ANI (@ANI) June 12, 2019

A team of personnel from the Indian Air Force, the Army and some civil mountaineers were on Wednesday airlifted to a location close to the crash site to look for possible survivors, officials said. The wreckage of the AN-32 aircraft of the Indian Air Force was spotted on Tuesday in a heavily forested mountainous terrain by an IAF Mi-17 helicopter.

"A team comprising personnel from IAF, Army and civil mountaineers have been airlifted to a location close to  the crash site," a spokesperson of the IAF said.

Another official said the rescue team will look for possible survivors.  The Russian-origin AN-32 aircraft was going from Jorhat in Assam to Menchuka advanced landing ground near the border with China on June 3 when it lost contact with ground staff at 1 pm, within 33 minutes of taking off. 

The IAF launched a massive operation after the aircraft went missing and the wreckage of the plane was spotted on Tuesday at a height of 12,000 feet near north of Lipo locality. The IAF said efforts are on to establish the status of occupants amid fears that chances of any survivor in the one of worst accidents involving a military platform in recent years may be very bleak.

The IAF spokesperson said Air marshal RD Mathur, Air officer-commanding-in-chief Eastern Air Command complimented the search team for their relentless effort spanning eight days. Mathur also thanked Arunachal Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Chief Secretary Satya Gopa for extending unflinching support to the IAF towards locating the missing An-32. 

"The proud and highly patriotic people of the state have worked tirelessly to help the IAF for a national cause," said the spokesperson. 

(With PTI inputs)