Indian Airlines Flight 440

Indian Airlines Flight 440

An Indian Airlines Boeing 737-200, similar to the one involved in the crash
Accident summary
Date	31 May 1973
Summary	Controlled flight into terrain
Site	New Delhi, India
Passengers	58
Crew	7
Fatalities	48
Survivors	17
Aircraft type	Boeing 737-2A8
Aircraft name	Saranga
Operator	Indian Airlines
Registration	VT-EAM
Flight origin	Madras Airport, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Destination	Palam International Airport, New Delhi, India

Indian Airlines Flight 440 was a flight on 31 May 1973 that crashed while on approach to Palam Airport killing 48 of the 65 passengers and crew on board.

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 NDB approach with visibility below minimal. The aircraft crashed and caught fire. 48 of the 65 passengers and crew on board Flight 440 perished in the accident. Rescue officials said the survivors were in the front of the aircraft.

The survivors included three Americans and two Japanese. The dead included four Americans, three people from the United Kingdom, and one woman from Yemen. Among the dead was Indian Minister of Iron and Steel Mines, Mohan Kumaramangalam.

Investigators determined the cause of Indian Airlines Flight 440 crashing to be crew error in letting the aircraft descend below glidepath.