'I jumped into life from seat 22F': 2010 Mangalore air crash survivor recalls horror

Kannur: “I will never forget that seat number, 22F. I jumped from that seat, which was about to be engulfed in flames, into life again.” These haunting words belong to K P Mayinkutty, a survivor of the 2010 tragic Mangaluru air crash. He lives in Kumbil town of Kannur.

Mayinkutty was on his return journey from Dubai when disaster struck. “There was a sudden jolt at first, and almost immediately, panic erupted across the flight. Then came a terrifying crash, followed by thick smoke and fire. The lights inside the aircraft went out completely.”

Amid chaos, Mayinkutty spotted a narrow opening on the left side of the aircraft. “I unbuckled my seatbelt and leapt through it,” he recalled.

The crash had occurred just as the flight was about to land, and he found himself thrown into a forest area.

“When I lifted my head and looked back, the entire aircraft was engulfed in flames,” he said.

Without stopping, he sprinted through bushes and trees. Soon, he came across another survivor, Krishnan, who hails from Kasaragod. Together, they stumbled towards a nearby railway track.

“A railway official was inspecting the nearby tracks. Only when I touched my head and felt the blood did I realise I was injured. Until then, fear had numbed the pain.”

Mayinkutty’s mobile phone was damaged, so he borrowed a phone from someone nearby to call his wife, Beefathima, and inform her of the accident. By then, people had started to gather at the scene.

The railway official rushed him to a nearby hospital in his car.

It was only on the hospital bed that the full impact of the crash began to sink in. “A Malayali doctor told me a few of us had miraculously survived,” he said. Mayinkutty spent four days in the hospital, receiving counselling to cope with the trauma.

Six months later, he mustered the courage to board a plane again and returned to the Gulf, free from the paralysing fear that once gripped him.

Mayinkutty received ₹5 lakh as compensation. He is now part of the Mangaluru Air Crash Association, a collective of survivors still fighting for adequate compensation. Their case is currently being heard by the Supreme Court.

Two months ago, Mayinkutty returned to Kerala with his wife. He now spends time at home and occasionally visits his son, who runs a printing press.

“I’ll be flying back next month,” he added.