The tragedy that struck Mangalore airport on Saturday morning led to the loss of 158 people on board. The flight IX-812 was an Air India Express from Dubai, and carried 137 adults, 19 children, 4 infants, and 6 crew members on board. 8 passengers were the only survivors.
The captain of the flight was a British national of Serbian origin, Z Glusica, and the co-pilot was H S Ahluwalia - both have been killed. 9 other passengers had not boarded the flight.
Praful Patel, the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, had owned moral responsibility for the tragedy. He is reported to have offered to resign, but the Prime Minister is said to have turned down the offer.
Investigators have now found the black box of the plane at the crash site. The box will be brought to the accident lab of the DGCA (Director General of Civil Aviation), where investigations into the last moments of the flight will be made. A forensic team from Hyderabad had also arrived at the site to conduct DNA tests on the bodies - the bodies were apparently charred beyond recognition.
Meanwhile, the bereaved have heart-rending stories to tell. A businessman Sameer A Shaikh, lost 16 of his relatives in Saturday's mishap - the family was travelling to attend the last rites of his grandmother. One of the air-hostesses, Sujata Survase, was set to get married soon. 17-year-old Subai student Harshini Poojna was on her way to Mangalore with her family for a wedding, and her last tweet read, "At the airport and blah. Onyl thing to look forward to is the rain." A sales executive Mahesh Shetty was flying down to meet a girl he was to marry.
This is India's third worst air tragedy ever, and the worst in a decade. It is believed that an "incorrect" flight path may have caused the crash, adding to the already tricky runway of Mangalore airport.