Over a month has passed since the Pawan Hans chopper crashed into the Arabian Sea near Bombay High, but the events leading up to the mishap are still a mystery since the authorities have not managed to decode the aircraft’s black box yet. The black box, or the Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) holds records of the last conversation between the deceased pilot and his missing co-pilot on the 14-seater helicopter.
mid-day had last reported last month that the black box was yet to be decoded because it had been damaged severely in the crash. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) decided that it would wait for a team from the helicopter manufacturer, Airbus (formerly Eurocopter) to read the data. There was further delay as the Airbus team’s plans to travel to India were disrupted by the Paris attacks last month (‘Black box still untouched, will be opened only next month’, November 27). However, once the team arrived in the city on Monday, even they were unable to decode the data, as the recorder tape had broken. Explaining the situation an official explained, “Due to extreme conditions of the crash, the black box recorder was found to be broken. It now needs to be repaired before it can be tested at the manufacturer’s laboratory in France.” The tape recorder has already been sent to France, where it will be followed by the Airbus team tomorrow. It is estimated that the box will require another 15 days for repairs. This is a major setback, as the information in it is crucial to piece together what happened before the crash.
12/12/15 Neha LM Tripathi/Mid Day
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mid-day had last reported last month that the black box was yet to be decoded because it had been damaged severely in the crash. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) decided that it would wait for a team from the helicopter manufacturer, Airbus (formerly Eurocopter) to read the data. There was further delay as the Airbus team’s plans to travel to India were disrupted by the Paris attacks last month (‘Black box still untouched, will be opened only next month’, November 27). However, once the team arrived in the city on Monday, even they were unable to decode the data, as the recorder tape had broken. Explaining the situation an official explained, “Due to extreme conditions of the crash, the black box recorder was found to be broken. It now needs to be repaired before it can be tested at the manufacturer’s laboratory in France.” The tape recorder has already been sent to France, where it will be followed by the Airbus team tomorrow. It is estimated that the box will require another 15 days for repairs. This is a major setback, as the information in it is crucial to piece together what happened before the crash.
12/12/15 Neha LM Tripathi/Mid Day
