One dead in army chopper crash in J&K's Kishtwar

New Delhi: An Advanced Light Helicopter of the Army crashed in Kishtwar on Thursday morning, killing an aviation technician and injuring its two pilots, days after the ALH fleet resumed flights following a safety audit. The pilots reported a technical fault to air traffic control and attempted a precautionary landing on a river bank when it crashed.

The audit that cleared the indigenous ALHs included thorough checks on all systems. The entire fleet was grounded for nearly a month after successive crashes of a Coast Guard and Navy variant of the helicopter. ET had reported the safety audit did not find any deep-rooted problem with the aircraft and corrective measures were taken. The nature of technical fault that led to Thursday's incident is unclear. A court of inquiry has been ordered.

"As per inputs, the pilots had reported a technical fault to the air traffic controller and proceeded for a precautionary landing. Due to the undulating ground, undergrowth and unprepared landing area, the helicopter apparently made a hard landing," a statement issued by the Northern Command headquarters said. Photographs and videos of the crash showed mangled remains of a completely destroyed helicopter. Officials added that the three on board were evacuated to the Udhampur Command hospital by Army rescue teams, but technician Pabballa Anil died from injuries sustained.


There were no casualties when the Coast Guard and Navy variants crashed in quick succession in March.