Last Updated on February 24, 2026 4:01 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
AMN / NEWS DESK
Seven people were killed after a charter air ambulance crashed last night in Simaria of Chatra district of Jharkhand. The aircraft had taken off from Ranchi at 7:10 PM, and contact with Air Traffic Control was lost around 7:34 PM, following which reports of the crash emerged.
After the accident, the bodies were brought to Chatra Sadar Hospital for postmortem, where Health Minister Dr. Irfan Ansari, MP Kalicharan Singh, and MLA Janardan Paswan reached to review the situation.
The Health Minister held a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police and Civil Surgeon. He said, prima facie, the matter appears related to aviation safety standards and that the black box, flight data recorder, cockpit voice recorder, weather conditions, ATC communication, and maintenance records will be examined. The government has assured all possible assistance and compensation to the bereaved families.
Flight Took Off from Birsa Munda Airport
According to officials, the crashed aircraft was a Red Bird company Air Ambulance C-90 that had taken off from Ranchi for Delhi around 7:00 pm. Air Traffic Control reportedly lost contact with the aircraft nearly 30 minutes after takeoff. The last wireless signal was traced near the Palamu-Garhwa region before communication was abruptly severed.
Seven Onboard, All Feared Dead
There were seven people onboard, including pilot Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, co-pilot Captain Samarjit Singh, Dr. Vikas Gupta, patient Sanjay Kumar, his wife Archana Devi, Dhruv Kumar, and paramedical staff Sachin Kumar Mishra. Initial reports suggest that all seven passengers have died in the crash, though an official confirmation is awaited pending detailed investigation.
Burn Victim Being Airlifted to Delhi
The patient, 41-year-old Sanjay Kumar from Latehar district, had suffered nearly 65 per cent burn injuries in a recent fire incident. He had been admitted to a private hospital in Ranchi and was undergoing treatment in the ICU. As his condition failed to improve, family members arranged for his transfer to Delhi for advanced medical care. Tragically, the aircraft met with disaster shortly after departure.
Cause Yet to Be Confirmed
Authorities have stated that the exact cause of the crash is yet to be determined. However, severe weather conditions, including heavy rainfall and gusty winds, are being considered possible contributing factors. Rescue and recovery operations continued through the night despite challenging weather, as the district remains gripped by shock and mourning.