Indian couple killed in the FlyDubai plane crash named

Monday March 21, 2016

Indian authorities have confirmed the identity of the married couple killed in the FlyDubai crash on Saturday. Shyam Mohan and his wife Anju Aiyappan, both 27, were on their way back to a Rostov-on-Don resort after a month-long trip home. The couple are from the southern Indian state of Kerala. They were both trained in ayurveda, an Indian form of alternative medicine.

Sushma Swaraj, Indian minister of external affairs, posted on Twitter:

"I have now received details of Indian nationals who died in the FlyDubai plane crash in Russia. We have lost two Indian nationals, Shyam Mohan and his wife Anju Aiyappan, of Ernakulam, in the crash."

She expressed her grief and support for their family. "Our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. The Indian embassy in Moscow will provide assistance to the family. President Vladimir Putin has also conveyed his condolences."

According to Indian media, the couple were in Kerala until Thursday, when they left for Dubai.

"Both of them are trained ayurveda nurses and their marriage took place on November 2, 2014," said C V Issac, who lived near the couple’s home town and delivered the news of their deaths to Mohan’s family. "It was their first visit back to Kerala after they both went to Russia."

Aiyappan had worked in Russia since 2011. After their marriage in 2014, Mohan joined her.

"His father is a carpenter and Mohan was the mainstay of his family, so was Anju, whose father passed away," said Saju Paul, a politician in Kerala.