The government on Thursday appointed the Court of Enquiry into the recent Air India Express aircraft crash at Mangalore that will be conducted by former Indian Air Force vice-chief Air Marshal (Retd.) B.N. Gokhale.
The Court of Inquiry has been ordered to submit its report by August 31 this year. The government on Thursday also appointed Capt. Ron Nagar, S.S. Nat, Babu Peter and G. Bhatura as “assessors” to the Court of Inquiry into the Mangalore crash. All four are individuals connected to the aviation sector.
The DGCA has already begun its probe into the Mangalore air crash and will assist the Court of Inquiry in its probe. The Court of Inquiry will function from New Delhi. Air India Express flight IX-812 from Dubai to Mangalore crashed after landing at the Bajpe airport at Mangalore on May 22, killing 158 passengers. The DGCA has now rushed 11 inspection teams to inspect “critical” airports (with table-top runways) in the country. Speaking after the first Civil Aviation Safety Advisory Council (Casac) meeting ended here on Thursday, minister of state for civil aviation Praful Patel said it had been decided to form four sub-groups that include one for monitoring the operational aspect of airlines and adherence to standard operating procedures.