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Could a $10-million system have saved lives in Kozhikode plane crash?

While most plane crash investigations blame dead pilots, Kozhikode investigators may have to dig much deeper

air india, plane crash, Kozhikode
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A security person stands guard near the mangled remains of an Air India Express flight after it skidded off the Kozhikode tabletop runway

Sai Manish
On a rainy August night last year, the Air India Express flight IX-1344, on a mission for repatriation of stranded Indian nationals in West Asia, overshot the tabletop runway at Kozhikode airport in Kerala. The plane fell a few feet below in the gorge and broke into two, killing 20 people, including both pilots. In many ways, it was an uncomplicated investigation for the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), as its black box containing the data flight recorder was salvaged almost immediately without any damage.
 
The delayed investigation
 
The preliminary report should have been out within 30 days,