Vietnamese search team finds body at CASA 212 plane crash site

By Vo Van Thanh, Thai Mac   June 23, 2016 | 12:12 am PT
Vietnamese search team finds body at CASA 212 plane crash site
Medical military vessels HQ 561 joins the search for the missing sea patrol plane CASA 212. Photo by VTV
Search and rescue teams looking for the missing sea patrol plane CASA 212 found an unidentified body at the aircraft’s suspected crash site near Hai Phong this morning, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Defense (MoD).

Rescue workers have handed over the unidentified corpse to the MOD’s Forensic Department to determine whether it was one of the nine crew members on board the missing plane.

One of the engines of the CASA 212 is reported to be lying at a depth of 60 meters below sea level, 15 nautical miles to the south south-east of Bach Long Vy Island in Hai Phong Province, as the search operation for the plane’s black box enters its second day.

Yesterday, the MoD said it had detected fragments of the plane and located the crash site. Special forces from Vietnam’s Navy have been conducting salvage operations since then.

Minister of Defense Ngo Xuan Lich has ordered for the search to be accelerated while Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung asked rescuers to prioritize the search for missing crew members, salvaging the aircraft’s engines and other fragments of the CASA 212.

According to Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Nhat, Airbus - the maker of the sea patrol plane - is cooperating with Vietnam to identify the reasons behind the incident. On June 21, The company asked for data from the black box and CASA’s cockpit recordings to be transferred to Airbus’s office in Madrid (Spain) so they can reconstruct the accident for investigation.

Sea patrol plane CASA C-212 Aviocar 400, operated by the Vietnam Coast Guard, was reported missing on June 16 during a search mission for the Su-30MK2 Vietnamese fighter jet that crashed offshore the central province of Nghe An. The jet had two pilots on board, one of whom, Major Nguyen Huu Cuong, was rescued, but the other, Lieutenant Colonel Tran Quang Khai, 43, was found dead at sea.

Related news:

Vietnam Coast Guard homes in on black box of missing CASA plane

Airbus to help investigate crash of missing Vietnamese CASA plane

Su-30 fighter and CASA-212 rescuer: the tragedy explained

Debris from missing CASA search plane recovered

 
 
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