Madagascar's police chief swims 12 hours to shore after copter crash
Antananarivo (Madagascar): Madagascar's police minister and an air force mechanic succeeded in swimming for 12 hours to safety after their helicopter crashed in the Indian Ocean.
Gen. Serge Gell , 57, the Secretary of State for the Gendarmerie, was discovered in the water by a fisherman in a canoe who brought him to shore, according to officials.
Another passenger, Chief Warrant Officer Jimmy Laitsara, also swam to the beach at Mahambo.
My turn to die has not yet come, thank God. I'm well. I'm just cold, said Gelle in a video posted to Twitter by Madagascar's defense ministry. "But I'm sad because I don't know if my friends are alive.
Gelle appeared on a lounge chair, still in his military camouflage, his hands pale and wrinkled by the water and the cold.
There were four of us in the aircraft. I was seated behind the pilot," he said of the crash on Monday evening.
"Not having a life jacket, I unfastened the seat and used it as a buoy. I stayed calm and took off anything heavy I was carrying like my boots and belt. I did everything to stay alive, he said. Gelle said he expected to be back at work in 24 hours and said that he lost his cell phone in the crash.
Many in Madagascar applauded Gelle's feat, calling him a hero an extraordinary athlete, and an example to follow on social media.
The cause of the helicopter crash remains undetermined, authorities said. Gelle said that gusts of wind had destabilized the aircraft. The helicopter pilot and another passenger are still missing.
The helicopter was one of two flying a government delegation to view the site where a boat, the Francia, sank, drowning at least 64 people on board.
On Wednesday 25 bodies were recovered off the island of Sainte-Marie, in the northeast of the country, according to officials.
The small cargo ship sank Monday while it was illegally transporting 138 people, according a statement Wednesday by the Maritime and River Port Agency.
Efforts continue to recover the more than 20 people still missing, said the agency.
The Francia sank Monday morning about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the town of Soanierana Ivongo.
A flood in the engine room caused the massacre. Obviously, the boat had exceeded its loading capacity, said Maurice Tianjara, deputy director-general of the maritime agency.
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Mangaluru–Muscat direct flight to resume from March 1: MP Brijesh Chowta
Mangaluru: The long-pending demand of passengers from Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and neighbouring Kerala, as well as Non-Resident Indians, has finally been addressed, with direct flight services between Mangaluru and Muscat set to resume from March 1, said MP Brijesh Chowta.
In a statement, he said a large number of people from the coastal region travel to Muscat for employment and business purposes, and there had been strong demand to restart the direct service. He said he had written to the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation requesting the resumption of the flight. Following this, Air India Express will operate the service.
As per the current schedule, the flight will operate twice a week, on Sundays and Tuesdays. The direct service is expected to reduce travel time and provide major relief to NRIs by enabling them to travel directly to their hometown.
The sudden suspension of the Mangaluru–Muscat direct flight had caused serious inconvenience to thousands of passengers from the coastal belt settled in Muscat. Those travelling to Mangaluru were forced to take connecting routes via Delhi, Mumbai or Kannur.
