IX- 812 Crash: Probable Reason and more

Saturday 22nd May was supposed to be a happy day for many indian families but it in fact turned out to be the biggest air disaster india has seen till date. Air India Express, IX 812, inbound Mangalore from Dubai overshot the runway and fell in the ravine at the end on the runway and burst into flames. As per reports, only 8 people survived with a casualty of 158 lives. Investigators are yet to examine the Flight data recorder( Black Box) which will clear the picture.

But what could have been wrong? The ATC says that the aircraft was looking good and no distress signal was relayed by the pilot or co-pilot. At around 6:03 AM,4 miles out , the ATC gave a "clear" on touchdown.The pilot acknowledged. That was the last communication with the aircraft. The aircraft was a boeing 737 which is a very reliable aircraft. Mangalore runway is a table top runway above a plateau and is 8000ft which is more than sufficient to land a 737 liner.So it clearly shows that whatever happened- it happened after the touchdown. 

Let's look at the landing of IX-812.... A typical airliner like 737 uses ILS for landing. For those who don't know about ILS- It stands for Instrument Landing System- ILS has 2 main parts- LOCALIZER: which aligns the aircraft with the runway and  GLIDE SLOPE:which determines the glide angle or the touchdown angle. In every sense ILS is an precision approach system and with the most sophisticated equipment it can guide you right down to the runway- zero Decision-Height and zero visibility. When IX-812 was landing the aircraft overshot it's actual touchdown point by 2000 ft.So the pilot has got only 5000ft to bring the aircraft to halt and taxi it on the tarmac. This means that pilot was too steep during the touchdown, which also means that aircraft speed was very high.Pilot must have realized that after touchdown.He must have deployed "Hard brakes". But because the angle of glide was too steep and speed was high, the tyres could not take that pressure and burst-ed. Aircraft went out of control and rolled in the gorge.

Ofcourse this is an assumption and we need to get the exact airspeed, weight of the aircraft and runway condition.

There are many things which you can do to maximize the chances of survival during air crashes :

1) Safest Seat: The rear portion of the aircraft is the safest. Many people think that the mid position is the safest. That's not true. The mid portion has wings and engines. Modern aircrafts store fuel in the wings. The mid section of the fuselage also holds the main fuel tank  and fuel pumps.

2) Emergency Briefings: I have seen many people laugh at stewardess during those briefings. Don't under estimate it. Before the aircraft takes to air..locate the nearest emergency hatch.Don't just make a visual snap. Remember the exit door by counting the number of rows of seats. Iam asking to do this because in most air crashes the fuselage will be full of fire, fuel and smoke. So you may not see the door clearly.

3)Clothing: Never wear synthetic cloths. They catch fire. Panty-hose have been known to melt right into a woman's skin. Wear shoes. 

Air transport is still by far the safest mode of transportation.

Maoist: A problem and Opportunity

Every maoist attack in dantewada or else, shakes the nation. But the  most surprising issue is the inability and lack of foresightedness in new delhi. Monday;s mayhem has shown that states and centre are not working together on a plan.They are still "working" on strategies. Government don't want to use military against maoist. And That should be fine. Most of the people in country don't give much attention to this "Red problem". Why these people from the jungles of Orrisa,Chatisgarh and Bengal have beacome a problem?

Well It's a long story.To make it short it's the anguish and frustration, accumulated over years. These tribals were neglected for decades. Reds are not different, they are part of this nation.All they want is their right to live..live like humans.They don't have food,shelter,Health facilities,Clean water,education,jobs and many more things.They never complained for last fifty years. But the patience has dried up.Just last weekend, I heard my neighbor shouting and abusing the customer care agent over the phone. Reason, Because his broadband connection was working very slow and he was not able to download the Ironman movie. They are fighting for basic amenities. People on top don't want them to live like humans and neither they want them to fight.If you go by goverment developmental plans, these people should be getting govenment jobs pretty easily. why? because they fall under "scheduled Caste" and "Scheduled Tribe" category. Then what's the problem? The problem is local authorities sold SC and ST certificates to people who can pay for it.Developmental funds were allocated to the states for the betterment of these backward regions. What's the problem? No audits..no folllowups were done and ministers and bureaucrats ate up all the funds. India sure is a country of great contrast. One part of the country boasts of flashy malls and other part of the country eats ant eggs. Every article about maoist problem talks about "How to defeat them in war". I think it needs to be changed. People should start asking questions? Re-evaluate the development work and initiate plans. Bring these people in sync with the rest of the country.Show them the results. Make them feel that this is their home and they have equal rights to live and dream.but the big question is how to do that? Government will say- "No development before surrender." Start working on those areas...and drop the idea of asking to surrender. The maoist problem has grown out of proportion and is spreading fast. 

People in these areas are dying because of diseases like jaundice,malaria, dysentery.Lalgarh hardly has a proper hospital. Don't just sent police and paramilitary..sent doctors, teachers, agriculturists also. They won't kill them.They hardly have done any damage to civilian population. Government will have to abandon it's inflexible policies and take the "step of faith". Don't just talk about deploying army and air force. You are scaring them. Talk about rehabilitation, bringing their kids to state run schools and colleges,teaching them the basics of modern agriculture, connecting them with communities.and trust me these will show results.Publish success stories.Give them hope and a path to come back. Otherwise this would become like a cancer. We, as a country need to stop it.