Another Aircraft Crashes In India, Kills Seven
India has recorded a second aircraft crash, less than a week after 241 Air India passengers perished in a plane crash.
A helicopter went down in the northern state of Uttarakhand, killing all seven people on board, including a two-year-old child and the pilot.
BBC reports that the Aryan Aviation Bell 407 helicopter was flying along the Char Dham pilgrimage route from Kedarnath to Guptkashi when it lost contact shortly after takeoff on Sunday morning.
Authorities later confirmed it had crashed near Gaurikund, a popular area for pilgrims in the Himalayan foothills.
Rescue teams, including the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), rushed to the scene. All six passengers and the pilot were confirmed dead, and their bodies have since been recovered.
The crash comes just days after India’s worst aviation disaster in years, when an Air India flight bound for London crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad on Thursday, killing 270 people, including persons on the ground.
That flight, AI171, went down in a residential area, striking a hospital building and leaving only one survivor. DNA testing is still ongoing to identify all the victims.
In light of both incidents, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has come under pressure to tighten safety oversight.
On Sunday, Uttarakhand’s Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami suspended all helicopter services on the Char Dham route until further notice, pending an emergency review of operator compliance, pilot training, and mountainous flight protocols.
“There have been three emergency landings and two crashes in just six weeks. We cannot take any more chances,” said Bansidhar Tripathi, the state’s Director-General of Information.
India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is leading both investigations. The black box from the Air India crash has already been recovered, and investigators say it may provide critical insight into that tragedy. Meanwhile, an inquiry has been ordered into the cause of Sunday’s helicopter crash.
“This is a time of deep sorrow, we must identify any lapses and ensure accountability. The lives lost must not be in vain,” Dhami said.
Another Aircraft Crashes In India, Kills Seven is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
