Rescue Operation
A rescue operation was launched under atrocious weather conditions by the ISAF and Afghan National Army (ANA), and the tail of the plane was sighted from two Dutch Apache helicopters at around 9:30 a.m. UTC.
The ISAF made numerous unsuccessful rescue attempts by helicopters. When those attempts failed the Afghan Ministry of Defense ordered the ANA's Central Corps to assemble a team to attempt a rescue of victims presumed to be alive. The Afghan National Army Commando responded on foot but were forced leave due to a snowstorm. Fourth day from the crash ISAF rescue team was able to reach the crashsite and confirmed all passenger and crewmen dead.
The crash site was at an altitude of 11,000 feet on the peak of the Chaperi Mountain, 20 miles east of the Afghan capital of Kabul.
It was discovered that all 104 passenger and crew on board were killed, and the plane was completely destroyed. The flight data recorder had been found and turned over to US National Transportation Safety Board analysis. The cockpit voice recorder which would confirm or deny the alleged request and denial to land at Bagram Air Base has not been located.
Read more about this topic: Kam Air Flight 904
Famous quotes containing the words rescue and/or operation:
“In the event of an oxygen shortage on airplanes, mothers of young children are always reminded to put on their own oxygen mask first, to better assist the children with theirs. The same tactic is necessary on terra firma. There’s no way of sustaining our children if we don’t first rescue ourselves. I don’t call that selfish behavior. I call it love.”
—Joyce Maynard (20th century)
“Waiting for the race to become official, he began to feel as if he had as much effect on the final outcome of the operation as a single piece of a jumbo jigsaw puzzle has to its predetermined final design. Only the addition of the missing fragments of the puzzle would reveal if the picture was as he guessed it would be.”
—Stanley Kubrick (b. 1928)