A nine-seater Cessna aircraft's forced landing near Rourkela on Saturday could have resulted in a catastrophic mid-air electrocution, officials revealed. The potential disaster was averted in a surprising manner when one of the plane's tyres, not its fuselage or wing, made contact with a high-tension wire.
A Tyre Acts as an Unlikely Saviour
Senior district officers present at the accident site disclosed that the aircraft scraped a high-tension wire during the emergency landing. Instead of the main body hitting the power lines, one of the tyres on the landing gear touched the wire. This critical difference is believed to have saved the passengers and crew from electrocution. Unlike larger commercial aircraft, the small tyre of this plane acted as an insulating shield, preventing the electric current from reaching the fuselage.
Former Air India captain, Manmath Routray, commented on the incident. "Usually, big planes are designed to withstand lightning and electric current. I don't know if this small plane had the same feature," he said. Routray's analysis suggests the tyre's impact caused the wire to break seconds before the plane nosedived, thus avoiding a far worse outcome.
Questions Over Flight Profile and Altitude
Captain Routray raised questions about the flight's final moments, noting that the Birsa Munda Airport in Rourkela was only eight nautical miles from the forced-landing site. He speculated that the pilot may have been using a low altitude, possibly due to winter conditions or to better visualize ground features, a common practice in small aircraft navigation.
Civil aviation experts explained that small aircraft like the Cessna 208 Caravan single-engine plane have a maximum altitude of around 10,000 feet. They often fly at lower altitudes, either due to engine issues requiring a glide or simply for better visual navigation. Communication challenges between pilots of small aircraft and Air Traffic Control (ATC) at smaller airstrips can also be a factor, as the monitoring is not always seamless and real-time.
Post-Landing Drama and Ongoing Probe
Local witnesses described a tense scene after the aircraft came down. They reported fuel leaking from one of the damaged wings. One of the pilots, after being extracted from the cockpit, urgently advised people to stay away from the aircraft due to the risk of a potential explosion. This indicated that the crew was aware of the wing damage and fuel leak during the forced landing sequence.
The investigation into the precise cause of the incident is now underway. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) will examine all aspects, including the flight path, communication logs, and the aircraft's final moments. Their findings will be crucial in understanding how the close call with the high-tension wire occurred and in preventing similar incidents in the future.
