Seven dead after air ambulance crashes in eastern India - VIDEO

The private chartered plane lost communication soon after taking off from the state capital Ranchi, said a statement from India’s Civil Aviation Directorate on the US social media company X’s platform.

Officials in Jharkhand said the crash occurred near Simaria in Chatra district.

All seven aboard, including a burn patient and crew, died after an air ambulance crashed shortly after takeoff in India's Jharkhand's Chatra district.

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A police official in Chatra told Anadolu early Tuesday that all seven onboard the plane have died.

The aircraft had requested a deviation due to the weather and communication and radar contact was lost just 23 minutes after takeoff.

It was identified as a Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd Beechcraft C90 aircraft VT-AJV carrying out a medical evacuation to the capital New Delhi.

Authorities had launched an operation to trace the plane.