Survivors recount final moments of ill-fated flight
▶ Shocked survivors of last week’s plane crash in Kozhikode, Kerala, that killed 18 people recall moment of impact
A woman who blacked out when the plane she was travelling on crashed in Kerala said she thought she had died.
Mufeeda Kandy, 28, was on the Air India Express flight from Dubai to Kozhikode that overshot the runway on Friday, crashing into a gorge.
It was the sound of her threeyear-old daughter crying that pulled her out of the darkness as she lay on the floor of the Boeing 737, which had split in two.
Several seats away, another Dubai resident, Ashraf Athalan, struggled to release his seat belt and shouted for help.
Ms Kandy and Mr Athalan are among 172 people rescued from the wreckage.
They have recounted the terrifying moments before the deadly crash, which killed 18 people including two pilots.
“I thought I was dead. When I opened my eyes, it was totally dark and I couldn’t see anything. Then I heard my daughter cry for me,” Ms Kandy said.
“Some people switched on the flashlights of their mobile phones. All my pain went away when I saw my daughter was safe.”
Ms Kandy, 28, is recovering in hospital from fractures to her skull, eye socket, jaw and limbs.
Her daughter, Laila Parambil, had a bruise on her forehead.
The sight of bleeding passengers is an image Ms Kandy said she wanted to forget.
“There were so many people with injuries in the stomach and neck. I don’t want to remember all that,” she said.
She said she could clearly recall the pilot’s voice towards the end of the four-hour journey, when he announced the plane was approaching the airport.
“Children were singing and clapping – you could hear them playing happily. The flight was expected to arrive on time at 7.10pm, and the pilot said we would arrive in 30 minutes. But then, 45 minutes passed and there was no update,” she said.
“I could hear people asking why we had not landed yet. Then the pilot said we were approaching the airport. We saw the runway lights and at that point, no one knew there would be any problem with landing. We still felt safe.”
Ms Kandy said that as the plane landed, passengers sensed its speed along the runway was faster than usual.
“It happened within seconds – there was no time to think.”
She recollected hurtling into the seat in front when the plane hit the Tarmac.
“I felt a vigorous jolt, heard very loud sounds and fell on the seat in front,” she said.
“I reached for my daughter. She had slipped and fallen out of her seat. I could hear her crying ‘ummachi’ [Mummy] but I lost consciousness.”
When she recovered, Ms Kandy could not move and was carried out by the rescue crew, who lifted passengers into ambulances amid heavy rain.
“The crew helped us get out. Some people walked out to the wing but it was too high up to jump off. I could not move my hands or legs. I was passed from one person to another until they got me to the ground,” she said.
Ms Kandy asked the paramedics in the ambulance to tell her father about the plane crash.
She was returning home to Kerala after visiting her husband, who works in a shop in Dubai.
“When I spoke to my father and told him what had happened, we were all crying. There was another lady in the ambulance, everyone was crying,” she said.
“So many people lost their lives. We thank God and we thank the pilots. It is because of their courage that we are alive,” she said.
“I still sometimes can’t believe this has happened to us.”
Mr Athalan said he knew something was amiss when the plane picked up speed.
“The pilot said, ‘We are reaching Calicut [Kozhikode]’, but after more than half an hour, there was nothing, no announcement,” he said.
Mr Athalan, 62, works in a grocery shop in Dubai and was returning home to Kerala.
“The plane was moving too fast and people were shouting. I have never felt such speed.
“I heard loud sounds and felt the tyres touch down twice. I try not to think of what happened. I remember worrying because I could not remove the seat belt.
“Everyone was shouting ‘Save me’. The rescuers and police told us not to worry. They said they would first help people who were badly injured.”
Mr Athalan’s hands and mouth were injured in the crash. He was in a lot of pain but grateful to be alive.
“I could not talk for a few days but I can slowly eat now. The pain I feel all over my body is nothing. I keep thinking of other people who have lost their family.”