Take-off, tragedy 20 minutes later: Two killed as training aircraft crashes in Kanpur

A trainee pilot and a flying instructor were killed when their twin-engine training aircraft crashed in a field near the banks of the Ganga in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, on Thursday afternoon, police said. A three-member team from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is set to probe whether a technical or human error caused the accident, officials said.

According to Vipin Tada, Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), Kanpur, the deceased have been identified as Sachin Bhatia, a flying instructor from Gujarat, and trainee Abhishek Pujari from Karnataka. Tada said the aircraft was operated by Garg Aviation, based at Kanpur Cantonment.

The aircraft took off at around 11.30 am and crashed about 20 minutes later in a field in Natthupurwa village, he said. Calls and messages to Garg Aviation seeking comment went unanswered. The Ministry of Civil Aviation said the probe agency, AAIB, will investigate the crash and a team of three officials from the DGCA will be visiting the crash site for necessary regulatory oversight and coordination.

The ministry said the aircraft, bearing registration VT-NBV, met with an accident approximately five nautical miles from Kanpur Civil Airport near Ganga Barrage. Citing preliminary information, the ministry said the Tecnam P2006T was on a training flight in the local flying area of Kanpur Civil Airport and had two people on board.

"Both sustained fatal injuries in the accident," the ministry said. Videos from the site showed the aircraft reduced to wreckage, with debris scattered around the area. A seat was also seen outside the wreckage, although officials have not confirmed whether the pilots attempted to escape the aircraft.

Bhupendra Pandey is the Resident Editor of the Lucknow edition of The Indian Express. With decades of experience in the heart of Uttar Pradesh’s journalistic landscape, he oversees the bureau’s coverage of India’s most politically significant state.

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