Plane that crashed near Elmina veered off the flight path; pilot did not issue mayday call – Anthony Loke

According to transport minister Anthony Loke, the aircraft that crashed near the Elmina township veered off to the right of the flight path just before the tragedy but the pilot did not issue a mayday call, reports The Star.

Loke added that the private jet’s first contact with the air traffic control (ATC) tower of the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang came at 2.47pm and was granted landing clearance at 2.48pm. At 2.51pm, personnel at the ATC tower saw a large column of smoke from the crash site around six km away. CCTV footage showed the plane just dropped from the sky and crashed.

“Efforts are now underway to recover the black box from the ill-fated plane. The Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has been activated and deployed to the accident site to recover the black box. All safety protocols were activated after the crash,” Loke told a press conference at the Subang Airport yesterday.

The crash claimed the lives of six plane passengers, including Pelangai assemblyman Datuk Seri Johari Harun, Kharil Azwan Jamaludin, Shaharul Amir Omar, Mohamad Naim Fawwaz Mohamed Muaidi, Muhammad Taufiq Mohd Zaki and Idris Abdol Talib @ Ramali. Two crew members also perished in the crash, including pilots Shahrul Kamal Roslan and Heikal Aras Abdul Azim, along with two road users.

Loke said the police have confirmed there were no survivors from the crash and the identities of the victims who were in the plane have been confirmed through a forensic process after their remains were brought to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital in Klang. The identities of the two road users who were killed would be confirmed by the police later. Loke advised people not to speculate as investigations are ongoing.

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