Aircraft was hit by snags earlier

The ill-fated AN-32 aircraft reported three technical snags earlier this month, but none of them probably were serious enough as the aircraft was declared fit for flying.

The three snags were related to sluggish throttle movement (July 2); a hydraulic leak in the port wing door (July 7) and a pressure leak from the port door (July 14), sources said.

The fact that the aircraft was brought back for flying duty within a week is a clear indication of its fitness. The mystery behind the AN-32 vanishing deepens because of the pilot’s inability to press the May Day button, meant for transmitting a distress signal. Experienced aviators said flying over the Bay of Bengal during the monsoon is a challenge.

Satellite pictures show widespread clouding over the Bay of Bengal, typical of the monsoon season. Since AN-32 carries a good quality on-board weather radar, flying through the clouds ideally should not be a problem for the experienced crew. No one knows what happened to them en route, officials said.

Recovery of the aircraft’s black box (flight data recorder) and the cockpit voice recorder can solve the mystery, officials added. The aircraft (K2743) from Sulur-based 33 Squadron was upgraded recently.

In fact, after the last fatal accident involving an AN-32 in Mechuka, Arunachal Pradesh, in 2009, the defence ministry decided to upgrade the entire AN-32 fleet in a $400-million package. The twin-engine aircraft reportedly lost height sharply from an altitude of 23,000 ft when it was around 280 km from the Tamil Nadu coast.

AN-32 is a tactical transport aircraft designed and manufactured by Antonov Design Bureau of Russia for the IAF. The first production AN-32 aircraft completed its maiden flight in June 1983. It entered into service with the IAF in July 1984.

Manufactured to suit both military and civil operations, AN-32 can take off and land on rough airfields and is capable of flying day and night in tropical conditions.

Incidentally, just a year ago, a Dornier aircraft of the Indian Coast Guard on a routine surveillance flight with three crew members on board went missing. Nearly a month later, the search team found the Dornier’s black box as well as skeletal remains and personal belongings of the three crew members from the sea bed of the Tamil Nadu coast.