All 10 personnel on board a Ranchi-bound Border Security Force plane were killed when it crashed into a wall in Delhi's Dwarka area on Tuesday. The Ministry of Civil Aviation confirmed the deaths and ordered an investigation into the crash. The pilot allegedly noticed a technical snag after he started the aircraft, but was told to go ahead with the flight anyway.
The victims were identified as chief pilot and Deputy Commandant of BSF, Bhagwati Prasad Bhatt, co-pilot and second-in-command of paramilitary Sashastra Seema Bal, Rajesh Shivrain, Deputy Commandant D Kumar, Inspector Raghvendra Kumar Yadav, Inspector SN Sharma, Sub-Inspectors Ravindra Kumar, Surendra Singh and C L Sharma, Additional Sub-Inspector DP Chauhan, and Constable KR Rawat.
The chartered plane lost contact with ground control before the crash, according to reports. PTI reported that the plane crashed into the Delhi airport boundary wall and landed in a sewage treatment plant while returning back due to an apparent technical problem five minutes after taking off.
Home minister Rajnath Singh and Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung both visited the crash site to take stock of the situation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted:
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