Jharkhand | 24 Feb 2026

A day after a tragic air ambulance crash in Jharkhand claimed seven lives, officials have shared early details pointing to bad weather as a possible cause. The aircraft, flying from Ranchi to New Delhi, went down near Simaria in Chatra district on Monday night while carrying a patient and medical staff.

According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the Beechcraft C90 aircraft with registration VT-AJV, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, had requested a deviation from its route due to weather conditions after establishing contact with Kolkata air traffic control. Shortly after this request, at around 7:34 pm, the aircraft lost both communication and radar contact.

Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said inclement weather could be one of the reasons behind the crash, though he stressed that the exact cause would be known only after a detailed investigation. Echoing this, Chatra deputy commissioner Keerthishree G told news agency that a thunderstorm was likely responsible. “It crashed due to a thunderstorm... Unfortunately, the team of doctors found them dead. The total number of people is seven. Two were crew members, and the remaining five were a patient and the patient's family members,” she said.

All seven people on board were killed in the accident. The deceased have been identified as Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi and Dhuru Kumar. Officials said all bodies have been brought to Sadar Hospital in Chatra for post-mortem, while aviation authorities continue their probe to establish the final cause of the Weather Deviation, Thunderstorm Suspected in Ranchi–Delhi Air Ambulance Crash That Killed Seven

A day after a tragic air ambulance crash in Jharkhand claimed seven lives, officials have shared early details pointing to bad weather as a possible cause. The aircraft, flying from Ranchi to New Delhi, went down near Simaria in Chatra district on Monday night while carrying a patient and medical staff.

According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the Beechcraft C90 aircraft with registration VT-AJV, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, had requested a deviation from its route due to weather conditions after establishing contact with Kolkata air traffic control. Shortly after this request, at around 7:34 pm, the aircraft lost both communication and radar contact.

Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said inclement weather could be one of the reasons behind the crash, though he stressed that the exact cause would be known only after a detailed investigation. Echoing this, Chatra deputy commissioner Keerthishree G told news agency that a thunderstorm was likely responsible. “It crashed due to a thunderstorm... Unfortunately, the team of doctors found them dead. The total number of people is seven. Two were crew members, and the remaining five were a patient and the patient's family members,” she said.

All seven people on board were killed in the accident. The deceased have been identified as Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi and Dhuru Kumar. Officials said all bodies have been brought to Sadar Hospital in Chatra for post-mortem, while aviation authorities continue their probe to establish the final cause of the crash.