Mumbai, Jun 29: At least 35 labourers had a close shave when a chartered plane crashed into open space near a construction site in the crowded Mumbai suburb of Ghatkopar on Thursday afternoon. The labourers had a lucky escape as were on a lunch break in the basement of the under-construction building when the aircraft crashed.
A construction labourer, Govind Dubey, was killed in the fire that broke out when fuel tank of the chartered plane exploded post the crash. His body was burnt beyond recognition. Lavkush Kumar and Naresh Nisad, who were the only ones working at the site, sustained minor injuries. A pedestrian was also injured.
"I saw the airplane coming my way. I jumped off the net I was standing on. I had a lucky escape. Because of the fire, my face got burned," Naresh was quoted as saying. Five person, including two pilots, were killed the King Air C90 aircraft, owned by UY Aviation Pvt Ltd (UYAPL), crashed in Ghatkopar.
The Mumbai-based company is owned by Kothari, famed for the Pan Parag gutka brand. The victims have been identified as Capt Pradeep Rajput, with over 5,000 hours of flying experience, and Capt Mariya Zuberi, who was formerly with Jet Airways, said a UYAPL statement.
The others on board were aircraft maintenance engineer Surabhi, who was more than two months pregnant, and her colleague, aircraft junior technician Manish Pandey, both employees of Indamer Aviation Pvt Ltd (IAPL).
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 29, 2018 09:37 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).