“When I close my eyes, I am reminded of a mother-son duo seated before me, wailing, crying for help until their breathing became shallow, slow and a silence fell over them.”
Twenty-five year old Akshay Pal Singh, a cabin crew member on board Air India Express flight IX 1344 which crashed at Calicut airport on August 7 is unable to come to terms with the tragedy.
“Nearly everyone in the first four rows in front of me died on the spot,” he says.
Mr. Pal was the “R1” cabin crew and was assigned to the right side of the front section of the aircraft. This part of the plane, including the nose, cockpit and the first three rows of passenger seats bore the brunt of the crash as it broke away from the rest of the plane following the accident. The two pilots succumbed to the injuries as the plane rammed into the boundary wall of the airport. The crash resulted in the death of 19 persons.
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“We had no inkling of anything untoward during landing. Before the aircraft started its descent, the First Officer mentioned to me that it was raining heavily in Calicut. Then the plane made an attempt to land, but there was a missed approach. They did a go-around, and we felt the plane landed normally. We were waiting for the braking effect, but the plane didn't decelerate. When the plane did slow down, we realised later that it had crossed the runway and was on soil. Immediately, within a nano second, everything came apart. The overhead bins were knocked down, seats came apart, our galley was blocked from the aisle and my colleague and I were trapped from all directions,” recalled Mr. Pal
The young cabin crew from Punjab’s Phagwara sustained a fracture in his left leg due to the crash and is recovering after surgery at Kozhikode’s Baby Memorial Hospital. Three other crew members — Shilpa Katare, Lalit Kumar, Abhik Biswas — had minor injuries and have been discharged from hospital.
Also read: Kozhikode plane crash | Pilots gave Calicut ATC no hint of danger
“After the crash, I stood up to help passengers and fell. That’s when I realised I had a fracture. I limped to the right door to open it, but it was jammed. My colleague tried the same with the left door, but was unable to move it. The cockpit door was slightly ajar, but it would not open either. We could neither move, nor rescue the passengers. So my colleague and I gave oral instructions to a passenger to find an escape. While we were unable to see anything because of the debris, we knew that the fuselage (aircraft belly) had broken and there was a way out.”
The air mishap led to the aircraft breaking into three different parts — the nose and the front section of passenger cabin, the fuselage and the tail section.
The crew member says that the effort of the first responders and local residents who came to their rescue was “praiseworthy”.
“We were still gathering our senses when help arrived. It was raining heavily, yet they didn't think of themselves. It was difficult to make their way into the aircraft — there were bags lying everywhere, seats were smashed against each other. But nothing stopped them. I have not seen God, but I have seen His image in them [the rescuers],” Mr. Pal said.
Given the shock of the event and the rapidity with which they unfolded, Mr. Pal’s memory of subsequent events is blurred and he can’t recall who pulled him out of the wreckage.
He remembers the Pilot-In-Command, Captain Gopal Vasant Sathe, and First Officer, Akhilesh Kumar for their pleasant demeanour. “They were very kind and never treated us as juniors. They always ensured we were comfortable. I think I have flown with them at least thrice.”
Ask him if he will rejoin flying duties after such an incident at a young age, he replies, “I am raring to join back, more so after the accident. Our job is to ensure the safety of passengers and the crash has made me realise the importance of the work we do. I have no doubt in my mind that I want to resume flying (duties) as soon as possible.”
