New Delhi: An Indian woman died while being taken from Agartala to Kolkata in an air ambulance. According to Bangladeshi media, the ambulance was forced to make an emergency landing when a technical fault caused the aircraft’s door to open partially mid-fight.
It is unclear whether the technical malfunction contributed to her death or if she died due to medical complications.
The Beechcraft King Air C90A, registered as VT-HYA, encountered the glitch as it was flying from Agartala to Kolkata on Sunday. It had already climbed 12,000 feet when the pilot declared an emergency and diverted the aircraft to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.
Airport authorities had firefighting and rescue vehicles, ambulances and medical personnel on standby before the aircraft landed.
The aircraft safely landed at around 1:40 pm local time. The seven people on board included two pilots, the patient, a doctor, a paramedic and two companions. The patient, Anjana Bhowmik, 56, was rushed to Kurmitola Multicare Specialised Hospital, where doctors declared her dead.
Airport Police Station officer-in-charge Kamrul Hasan Talukder told The Daily Star that Bhowmik died at the hospital at 4:40 pm on Sunday.
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When an ambulance needs rescuing
The air ambulance lacked the clearance to make an emergency landing in Dhaka but the Bangladeshi authorities assisted the aircraft on humanitarian grounds. The Indian High Commission in Dhaka coordinated with Bangladeshi officials to complete the necessary formalities.
The aircraft still remains at Dhaka airport. It was operated by India’s SKB Infracon Pvt Ltd. The other six people on board were reported safe.
The incident raises questions about safety protocols for medical evacuation flights, which transport critically ill patients between cities for specialised treatment. Such flights are often used when patients require urgent medical attention unavailable locally.
(Edited by Janaki Pande)