A Ranchi-Delhi air ambulance carrying a critically injured burn patient and a medical crew crashed in Jharkhand’s Chatra district on Monday night, February 23, 2026, killing all seven people on board. The Beechcraft C90 aircraft, operated by Redbird Airways (registration VT-AJV), was en route from Ranchi to Delhi when it went down after losing radar contact.
The aircraft departed Birsa Munda Airport in Ranchi at 7:11 pm and initially established contact with Kolkata air traffic control. Shortly after takeoff the crew requested a weather-related deviation along the planned route. Radar contact was lost at about 7:34 pm, roughly 100 nautical miles southeast of Varanasi, and the plane did not re-establish communication with Varanasi or Lucknow control units.
Onboard were a 41-year-old burn patient, identified as Sanjay Kumar, who was being moved from Ranchi’s Devkamal Hospital for advanced treatment, a doctor, a paramedic, two attendants and two pilots. Debris later discovered deep inside the Kasiyatu forest near Simaria in Chatra district confirmed the aircraft had crashed; there were no survivors.
Officials have pointed to poor weather as a possible factor but stressed that a definitive cause will only be determined after a full investigation. “Inclement weather was a possible factor,” Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said, while investigators collect evidence.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has begun gathering radar data and operational records to establish the sequence of events. The crash has renewed scrutiny of India’s non-scheduled aviation sector, including charter operators and air ambulance services. Redbird Airways, founded in 2018, operates charter and medical evacuation flights across India and provides onboard medical teams and life‑saving equipment.
Original Source: https://www.firstpost.com/india/ranchi-delhi-air-ambulance-crash-kills-all-7-onboard-plane-went-off-radar-after-weather-deviation-request-13982907.html
Category: India
Tags:
Publish Date: 2026-02-24 05:34:00
