Crashed World War II aircraft discovered in the Himalayas

A missing World War II aircraft, C-46 transport aircraft has been identified in India's remote Himalayas nearly 80 years after it crashed with no survivors, following a treacherous search that led to the deaths of three guides.

The C-46 transport aircraft was carrying 13 people from Kunming in southern China when it disappeared in stormy weather over a mountainous stretch of Arunachal Pradesh state in the first week of 1945.

Remains of C-46

The expedition took months and saw Kuhles and a team of guides from the local Lisu ethnic group ford chest-deep rivers and camp in freezing temperatures at high altitudes. Three guides died of hypothermia at an initial stage of the project while camped out during a September snowstorm.

But the team finally stumbled upon the plane on a snow-clad mountain top in December 2021, where they were able to identify the wreckage by the tail number. There were no human remains in what was left of the craft. Kuhles was tasked with conducting the search by Bill Scherer, whose officer father was aboard the plane when it crashed.

Parts of 'C-46' found (Picture Credit: Aljazeera)

"All I can say is that I am overjoyed, just knowing where he is. It is sad but joyous. I grew up without a father. All I can think of is my poor Mother, getting a telegram and finding out her husband is missing and she is left with me, a 13 month old baby boy."Bill Scherer

Over 400 American soldiers are believed to have gone missing in aircraft crashes while crossing ‘The Hump’ from India to China, according to reports. The Hump, over the Himalayas, was the main supply route between India and China during World War II, after Myanmar was captured by Japanese troops. The route is believed to have been dangerous due to the mountain peaks and bad weather.

'The Hump'

The Indian Army has recovered the wreckage of a World War II vintage US Air Force aircraft 'The Hump' in Arunachal Pradesh’s Roing district, in 2019. A 12 member strong army patrol with a police representative on March 30 located the aircraft debris, which was covered by thick undergrowth and buried under five feet of snow.

The Hump

The army had received information about the wreckage from local trekkers of Lower Dibang district through the police. A special patrol of the army was sent to locate the wreckage in a remote location, about 30 km from Roing. The US government’s Defence Prisoners of Wars/Missing in Action Accounting Agency has been conducting searches in India to look for remains of American soldiers, who have been missing since the war.

In April 2016, India had handed over the remains of a US Air Force B-24 ‘Hot as Hell’ bomber. The aircraft was flying from Kunming, China to Chabua, Assam in January 1944, when it had crashed in Arunachal Pradesh. In 2006, the crash site was identified. There are believed to be several more such crash sites in the North-East, especially Arunachal Pradesh.

India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has announced that the Intermediate Jet Trainer (IJT) also known as the HJT-36 Sitara carried out six turn spins to the right as well as left.

FlightGlobal

The HAL HJT-36 Sitara is a subsonic intermediate jet trainer aircraft designed and developed by Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) and built by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy.

Touted to replace the HAL HJT-16 KIRAN as the Stage-2 trainer for the two forces, The Sitara is a conventional jet trainer with a low swept wings, a tandem cockpit and small air intakes for the engine on either side of its fuselage.

Brief history

HJT-16 KIRAN | Wikimedia Commons

The HJT-36 Sitara was developed as a successor to HAL's earlier trainer, the HJT-16 Kiran, introduced in 1968. Following reviews by the Indian Air Force, the Government of India awarded HAL a contract for the development, testing, and certification of two prototype IJT aircraft.

The first and second prototypes of the HJT-36, labelled PT-1 and PT-2, flew on 7 March 2003 and in March 2004, respectively. Since then, the program had experienced a series of delays.

The prototype which was powered by a SNECMA Larzac 04-H-20 non-afterburning turbofan producing 4.12 kN of thrust, was assessed to be "underpowered" by the Air Force. Subsequently, the HAL sought to replace the SNECMA engines with the NPO-Saturn AL-55I engines.

SNECMA Larzac 04-H-20 | Wikiwand

After much delay, the first AL-55I engine was received from Russia on 28 December 2008, 2 years later than committed. The program took a backseat again due to two accidents in February 2007 and in February 2009 involving each of the prototypes, which grounded the aircraft for repairs and investigations.

AL-55I engine | Wikipedia

HJT-36 Tech and Specs

Crew2Wingspan10 m (32 ft 9.75 in)Maximum take-off weight5,400 kgPowerplant1 × SNECMA Larzac 04-H-20 non-afterburning turbofan, 14.12 kN (3,175 lbf) thrust (PrototypesPowerplant1 × SATURN/UMPO Al-55I non-afterburning turbofan, 17 kN (3,821 lbf) thrust (Production aircraft)Maximum speed 750 km/h Range1,000 km Service ceiling9,000 m (29,520 ft)g limits+7.0/–2.5Wikipedia

The cockpit features a  conventional tandem two-seat configuration with the trainee pilot forward and the instructor in the raised seat to the rear.

The prototype aircraft used Zvezda K-26LT lightweight zero-zero ejection seats with the possibility of being upgraded to Martin-Baker Mk.16 IN16S seats.

Spin testing of the aircraft

The spin testing of an aircraft is the most crucial phase of its flight testing. Spin is a manoeuvre an aircraft gets into on its own when its controls are mishandled. According to experts, Spin testing seeks to prove that the IJT can do a spin and recover safely from it.

The spin testing of an aircraft is the most crucial phase of its flight testing. The testing will be gradually progressed to assess the behaviour of the aircraft till six turn spins to either side to meet the targeted requirement.HAL said in a statement

After encountering issues during initial spin testing, the company had to redesign the aircraft by moving the vertical tail aft and extending the rudder surface with advice from U.S. aviation technology and Bihrle Applied Research Inc. testing firm. Changes were incorporated and subsequent clearances were obtained from competent authorities.

They have now been incorporated with necessary safety devices such as Anti-Spin Parachute Systems. During the first flight, initially, the aircraft was taken through one turn spin to the left and right, to test the spin characteristics.  HAL test pilots Group Captain HV Thakur (retd) and Wing Commander P Avasti (retd) conducted the tests on Monday.

Although in the final stages of flight certification tests, the IJT has been tested to its full envelope in terms of speed, altitude and load factor (‘g’ envelope).

SOURCE(s)

COVER: Wikipedia

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Thursday, January 20 directed the Kalrock-Jalan consortium, the winning bidder for bankrupt Jet Airways, to share portions of the resolution plan about claims of employees with the airline's workmen.

The Association of Aggrieved Workmen of Jet Airways (India) Ltd had sought a copy of the approved resolution plan and the latest direction has come on a plea filed by the association.

The development comes almost seven months after the Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium's resolution plan in June 2021.

A two-member NCLAT bench, headed by Chairman Justice Ashok Bhushan, said as the consortium's resolution plan for the airline has already been approved by the NCLT, the plan "is no more confidential" and a copy should be provided to the aggrieved person.

"We are not inclined to issue a direction to provide the entire resolution plan to the appellant for hearing. We, however, are fully satisfied that the appellant is entitled to the relevant part of the resolution plan to the claims of the workmen and employee," the NCLAT said.

Further, the appellate tribunal directed that the part of the resolution plan which deals with claims of workmen and employees should be given to the association within "three weeks from today". The NCLAT's detailed judgement on the matter is expected soon, while for now, it has made an oral pronouncement.

K S Ravichandran, who represents the association, said they had asked for a copy of the resolution plan.

"NCLAT has directed that there is no confidentiality for the resolution plan after its sanction by NCLT. In respect of workmen and employees, that portion of the resolution plan shall be furnished to the appellants and this order is directed against the successful resolution applicant," Ravichandran told PTI.

In October 2020, the airline's Committee of Creditors (CoC) approved the resolution plan submitted by the consortium of the UK's Kalrock Capital and the UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan.

The State Government on January 24, signed MoUs with Thumby Aviation and Chipsan Aviation which will offer heli tourism services in Karnataka to domestic and international tourists.

The Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC), which signed the MoUs for five years, will help the chopper service providers with government approvals, permits, certification, and access to government helipads. It will also help the service providers in tie-ups with luxury hotels and resorts.

The MoUs are part of the state's heli tourism project. Coorg, also known as Kodagu, and Kabini are two top tourist destinations in the state that have access to helicopter services. Karnataka is home to several historical and religious places, wildlife parks, hill stations, and waterfronts.

"The service providers who come on board will need to provide heli tourism services at the notified locations. They should operate 50 trips of passenger services per year during the first two years and 100 trips per year after that.KSTDC will provide support to these agencies to get various government approvals and permits, certification, etc., and also assist in tying up with luxury hotels and resorts in the state. The promotion of heli-tourism will be carried out through the tourism department and KSTDC websites and social media platforms."Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Secretary, Tourism Department

Heli Tourism and BLADE

The Indian subsidiary of US-based helicopter transport firm BLADE first entered the state in December 2020 with its weekend private charter services. To boost heli tourism in Karnataka, helicopter transport firm BLADE has launched its scheduled by-the-seat services on Bengaluru-Coorg and Bengaluru-Kabini routes in the state. With the launch of the services on the two routes, travel time to the two cities from Bengaluru which is the state capital will be reduced from 6-7 hours by road at present

“Karnataka boasts of some of the most beautiful destinations in the country. However, their accessibility is a pain point. 6-7 hours of road travel from Bengaluru eat into the precious time that travelers could otherwise spend enjoying their holiday. BLADE mitigates this pain with an hour’s seamless experience.”Amit Dutta, MD, BLADE India

BLADE India, a joint venture between BLADE Urban Air Mobility Inc, headquartered in New York, and New Delhi-based venture capital firm Hunch Ventures, started operations in Maharashtra in 2019. According to the company website, the trip from Jakkur aerodrome in Bengaluru to Coorg costs INR 16,000 per seat. The company has also tied up with Evolve Back Resorts to enable customers to book their flight and stay at once; land at the property directly in an hour and be more accessible.

In June 2021, the Karnataka Tourism Department got approval from the Youth and Sports Services department and Airport Authority of India (AAI) to use Jakkur aerodrome and five other airstrips for heli-tourism purposes. The state government was planning to use Jakkur for landing and take-off purposes. The department is also planning a circuit for tourists to take helicopters to Goa, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, and Kerala.

Thumby Aviation

About the two chopper service providers

Chipsan Aviation was established as a Partnership Firm in 2009. Chipsan has been providing custom-stitched aviation services and expanding our clientele to become a Non-Scheduled Air Operator approved by the DGCA in 2017.

This milestone of buying our first helicopter was achieved with no investor backup and solely from the income generated over the 5 years from the line of activity. In 2019 Chipsan added two more aircraft to the fleet including a Twin Engine VIP configured Class I Performance machine.

In 2020, Chipsan has signed for 2 more Single engine multi-role helicopters with an EMS facility. Chipsan also manages four aircraft from various operators by inducting them on long-term wet-lease.

Thumby Aviation has given 40+ Years in Aviation & 20+ Years in Aviation Consulting. In the year 2007, they did over 2500 Joy rides for passengers during the Dubai Shopping Festival, Calicut. Other services like – Trivandrum Darshan, Heli-Tour packages.

Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has imposed a fine of INR 20 lakh on Kolkata's Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport (NSCBIA) for violating safety norms by neglecting runway maintenance. The DGCA's audit report suggested that the Kolkata airport has been negligent in the maintenance of the runway as per the mandated safety requirement. The aviation regulatory body has issued a show-cause notice to the airport for a "serious violation of security" rule at the airport.

Kolkata International Airport faces a fine of INR 20 lakh for poor runway maintenance.

As per reports, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has constituted an internal committee to look into the said incident, but there is no statement given from their end.

"After the regulator started safety auditing for airports a few months back, the audit report found that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport NSCBIA has committed serious safety norms violations, especially on the runway maintenance work. It has been decided to impose a fine of INR 20 lakh. According to the audit report, the maintenance of the runway at Kolkata airport was not done as per the guidelines, the lights on the runway were not fixed properly and Foreign Object Debris (FOB) was reported on the runway, which could have been a part of an aircraft's safety during landing and takeoff was a concern."Senior Official, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)

About the Kolkata Airport

Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (also known as Kolkata Airport), was renamed in 1995 in the honor of Subhas Chandra Bose a great freedom fighter, is located in the Dum Dum area approximately 5 Km from the newly developing industrial IT hub and 17 km from the centre of the city.

It is the fifth busiest airport in the country after Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, and Bangalore and presently handles over 9 million passengers annually. The airport is the largest in eastern India and the only international airport operating in West Bengal with huge prospects of becoming an aviation hub of this region.

With the realization that the current terminal has already saturated and would not be able to handle the influx of passengers due to massive growth in passenger volume during the past three to four years, the Airports Authority of India has planned and taken up construction of a new integrated airport passenger terminal with a capacity of 20 million passenger per annum with a floor carpet area of more than 2,00,000 sq meters.

At an age when many others would be contemplating joining college, Zara Rutherford had other plans in mind.

Darlington & Stockton Times

The teenage aviator with dual British-Belgian nationality has officially created the world record to become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo.

In an epic 41-country journey spanning over 52,000 kilometres, the 19-year old broke two Guinness World Records and landed at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in western Belgium on Thursday.

New York Post

My name is Zara Rutherford. I’m attempting to fly solo around the world.she said to the internet after leaving Belgium in August

The journey, however, was not a bed of roses (or "sky of roses, so to speak! ) for the aviator as she had her fair share of challenges along the way.

In the beginning, the entire journey was touted to take about 3 months, but that was before weather and visa issues would play the spoilsport, thereby pushing the schedule ahead by another 2 months. Ms Rutherford, 19, dodged giant clouds in Colombia and lightning flashes in Mexico. In Alaska, her tiny plane was grounded for weeks by bad weather and a visa delay.

I would say the hardest part was definitely flying over Siberia -- it was extremely cold. It was minus 35 degrees Celsius on the ground. If the engine were to stall, I'd be hours away from rescue and I don't know how long I could have survived for.Rutherford said during a press conference

Zara Rutherford while in Russia | Teller Report

After having flown the frozen, desolate patch of Siberia, it wasn't long before China barred her from entering the Chinese airspace. Air routes over India were smog-laden although it never deterred her from continuing.

When China barred her from its airspace as a coronavirus protocol, she had to fly more than six hours over the water toward South Korea.

I was hoping to complete it by Christmas but I guess that's not happening anymore. But it's an adventure.Rutherford told reporters at Gimpo International Airport, Seoul, South Korea after arriving from Vladivostok on December 13

Apparently, the young aviator faced challenges on the ground too.

She made an unplanned landing at a remote airfield in North Carolina. Owing to the small size of the airstrip and since the taxi company in the nearest city wouldn't pick her up, she had to hitchhike.

Regardless of the countless issues, she faced along the way, Rutherford was only grateful to all the people she encountered along the way for their gratitude and touch of kindness, despite being total strangers.

While she's flown to an array of destinations, such as Singapore, Egypt and Greece, along with Russia and South Korea, Rutherford has been unable to explore any of them on land due to Covid-19 restrictions.

When she landed in the Belgian city of Kortrijk on Thursday, she became the youngest woman to circumnavigate the globe solo, and in a microlight- a two-seater aircraft that is only about 22 feet long and not certified to fly on instruments alone. The aircraft flown by Rutherford had customizations such as a second radio, and an additional fuel tank in the place where the second passenger seat would typically sit. Additionally, it also featured an integrated parachute.

A long string of supporters lined up on the tarmac to show their support and welcome her home.

It will be very strange to not have to fly every single day anymore or try to fly every single day anymore. I’m just happy to finally also be in the same spot for a few months.she said at a news conference after landing

https://twitter.com/ABCNewsLive/status/1484330874300559365

ABC News Live

Although on a year gap now, Rutherford eventually plans to go to university in September to study computer engineering. She received her first license in 2020.

Did you know? Zara Rutherford's current record stands to break the previous one held by Shaesta Waiz. In 2017, Shaesta became the youngest woman to fly solo around the world in a single-engine aircraft, although she was 30 at the time.

Shaesta Waiz (right) | Medium

SOURCE(s)

COVER: The Indian Express