IAF Recovers Cockpit Voice and Data Recorders of Crashed AN-32 Aircraft

Itanagar: The Indian Air Force on Friday said the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) of the AN-32 aircraft that crashed in Arunachal Pradesh on June 3 has been recovered.

"The rescue and search team has recovered the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and the process of recovering the mortal remains of all air warriors is still on at the crash site," said Indian Air Force (IAF) spokesperson in the Eastern Air Command, Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh.

Though the weather continues to affect the pace of recovery, Singh said all efforts are being made to expeditiously complete the task using all resources of Civil, Army and IAF.

On Thursday, the IAF ordered a Court of Inquiry to investigate the cause of the accident.

A team of 16 mountaineers from the IAF and the Indian Army along with five civilian mountaineers are combing the site of crash 16 km north of Lipo, northeast of Tato under West Siang district, at an approximate elevation of 12,000 feet.

The bodies of the crash victims were found to be dismembered, Gijum Tali, a state government official, had earlier said. Seven bodies have been recovered till Thursday, he added.

The AN-32 took off on June 3 from the Jorhat airbase for the Mechuka Advanced Landing Ground in Arunachal's Shi-Yomi district bordering China, but lost contact with the ground agencies within 35 minutes. After its disappearance, the IAF commenced extensive search operations under the direct supervision of the Eastern Air Command headquarters at Shillong.

The C-130J and AN-32 planes and Mi-17 helicopters of the IAF and ALH helicopters of the Army were launched immediately to locate the missing aircraft. Indian Navy P-81 aircraft joined the search operations on June 4.

Resources from various agencies, including the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), were brought into the operation to enhance its effectiveness. CARTOSAT and RISAT satellites of the Indian space agency also took images of the area, which assisted the search team in locating the aircraft.

Extensive support towards the rescue operation was also provided by the state government and police and the local population. On June 8, the IAF announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh for any information leading to the location of the missing aircraft.