New Delhi: Indian authorities have decided to accord observer status to UN body ICAO’s expert in the ongoing probe into the fatal Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12, a top official source said on Friday.
In a not-so-common move, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has sought observer status for its expert in the investigation.
Air India’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft operating flight AI 171 en-route to London Gatwick crashed into a medical hostel complex soon after take-off from Ahmedabad on June 12, killing 270 people, including 241 people who were onboard the plane. One passenger survived.
The probe into the crash is in progress.
On Friday, the official source told PTI that after considering the request, it has been decided to accord the observer status to ICAO expert in the investigation.
The Indian authorities are approaching the probe in a transparent manner, the official source emphasised.
Further details could not be immediately ascertained.
An aircraft accident investigation is carried out as per Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention.
The International Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS) contained in the nineteen Technical Annexes to the Convention on International Civil Aviation (also called Chicago Convention) are applied universally and produce a high degree of technical uniformity which has enabled international civil aviation to develop in a safe, orderly and efficient manner, as per ICAO website.
SARPS have been developed by ICAO, which was established in 1944.
On Thursday, the civil aviation ministry said data is being extracted from black boxes, and analysis of cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder of the crashed aircraft is underway.
AAIB promptly initiated an investigation and constituted a multi-disciplinary team headed by the AAIB chief on June 13 in line with prescribed norms. The team includes an aviation medicine specialist, an Air Traffic Control (ATC) officer, and representatives from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the ministry had said in a statement.
