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{{short description|1973 plane crash in India}}
{{EngvarB|date=July 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
{{Infobox aircraft occurrence
| name = Indian Airlines Flight 440
| image = Indian Airlines Boeing 737-2A8; VT-EGE, December 1998 BUI (5404996252).jpg
| image_upright =
| alt =
| caption = An Indian Airlines Boeing 737-200, similar to the one involved in the crash
| occurrence_type = Accident
| date = {{start date|1973|5|31|df=y}}
| site = New Delhi, India
| coordinates = 
| aircraft_type = [[Boeing 737-200|Boeing 737-2A8]]
| aircraft_name = ''Saranga''
| operator = [[Indian Airlines]]
| plane1_IATA = IC440
| plane1_ICAO = IAC440
| plane1_callsign = INDAIR 440
| tail_number = VT-EAM
| origin = [[Chennai International Airport|Madras Airport]], [[Chennai]], Tamil Nadu, India
| stopover =
| stopover0 =
| stopover1 =
| stopover2 =
| stopover3 =
| last_stopover =
| destination = [[Indira Gandhi International Airport|Palam International Airport]], New Delhi, India
| occupants = 65
| passengers = 58
| crew = 7
| fatalities = 48
| injuries = 17 (10 serious, 7 minor)
| missing =
| survivors = 17
| summary = [[Controlled flight into terrain]]
}}

'''Indian Airlines Flight 440''' was a flight on 31 May 1973 that crashed while on approach to [[Palam Airport]] (now [[Indira Gandhi International Airport]]) killing 48 of the 65 passengers and crew on board.

==Accident==
Flight 440 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from [[Madras]] (now Chennai), [[Tamil Nadu]] to New Delhi. A Boeing 737 named ''Saranga'' was used for the flight. As Flight 440 approached [[Palam International Airport]] in driving dust and a rainstorm, the aircraft struck high tension wires during a [[Non-directional beacon|NDB approach]] with visibility below minimal. The aircraft crashed and caught fire.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19730531-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-2A8 VT-EAM Delhi-Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL )|website=Aviation Safety Network|publisher=[[Flight Safety Foundation]] |access-date=2016-05-31}}</ref> 48 of the 65 passengers and crew on board Flight 440 perished in the accident.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1 June 1973 |title=Airline crash in New Delhi |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_pszAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zTIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=5529,2776816&dq=new+delhi+indian+airlines+crash&hl=en |access-date=28 October 2014 |work=[[Lodi News-Sentinel]] |page=8 |via=[[Google News]] |agency=[[United Press International]]}}</ref> Rescue officials said the survivors were in the front of the aircraft,<ref name="Crashprobed">{{Cite news |date=1 June 1973 |title=Indian crash site probed by crews |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=lqFYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=jvgDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7336,354712&dq=new+delhi+indian+airlines+crash+rescue+officials&hl=en |access-date=28 November 2014 |work=[[Spokane Daily Chronicle]] |page=11 |via=[[Google News]] |agency=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> although one survivor reported sitting in the back row.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gorvett |first=Zaria |date=12 July 2017 |title=What not to do in a disaster |url=http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170711-what-not-to-do-in-a-disaster |access-date=4 October 2018 |work=BBC News}}</ref>

The survivors included three Americans and two Japanese. The dead included four Americans, three Britons, and one woman from Yemen. Notable survivors included [[Bhan Singh Bhaura]] Member Parliament and [[V. K. Madhavan Kutty]], an eminent journalist and writer. <ref name=Crashprobed/> Among the dead was Indian Minister of Iron and Steel Mines, [[Mohan Kumaramangalam]], [[Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha]] and [[Communist Party of India]] politician [[K. Baladhandayutham]] and former [[Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha]] and [[Indian National Congress]] politician [[Devaki Gopidas]] and Indian businessmen Mallikarjun Reddy Kakani and Raghunatha Reddy Kakani.

==Cause==
Investigators determined the Indian Airlines Flight 440 crash was caused by the crew descending below the minimum decision height.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=05311973&reg=VT-EAM&airline=Indian+Airlines|title=AirDisaster.Com Accident Database|website=www.airdisaster.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150321184908/http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/view_details.cgi?date=05311973&reg=VT-EAM&airline=Indian+Airlines|archive-date=2015-03-21|url-status=usurped|access-date=2016-05-30}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Japan Air Lines Flight 471]], another aviation disaster that took place at Palam International Airport less than a year prior to Indian Airlines Flight 440.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://www.planecrashinfo.com/1973/1973-25.htm Indian Airlines Flight 440 at Planecrashinfo.com]
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1973}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in India}}
{{Air India}}
[[Category:1973 in India]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1973]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by pilot error]]
[[Category:Airliner accidents and incidents caused by weather]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in India]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents involving the Boeing 737 Original]]
[[Category:Indian (airline) accidents and incidents|440]]
[[Category:May 1973 in Asia]]

Indian Airlines Flight 440 - Revision history

CleanupBot at 03:48, 22 March 2026