Timeline of YSR search operations

The following is the timeline of the search operations to locate the helicopter carrying Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy.

The following is the timeline of the search operations to locate the helicopter carrying Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy:

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Wednesday, Sep 2:

8.30 am - Bell 430 helicopter carrying YSR and four others takes off from Hyderabad's Begumpet airport.

9.35 am - Radio contact lost with helicopter.

1 pm - Indian Air force receives request for search and rescue operations.

1.15-1.20 pm - Two Chetak helicopters take off from Hakimpet training base in Secunderabad.

3 pm - A Mi-8 helicopter takes off from Bangalore's Yelahanka air base. It starts scanning the area indicated by state government agencies.

4.30 pm - A Dornier aircraft takes off from Yelahanka. It flies from Yelahanka to Kadapa, Srisailam, and Chittoor before returning to base. It was equipped with a synthetic aperture radar that can look through heavy cloud cover.

5 pm - An Avro aircraft and two Chetak helicopters take off from Hyderabad. An operation room is set up at Kurnool.

6.45 pm - Decision taken to press into service Sukhoi SU-30MKIs combat aircraft for mapping the densely forested area in which the Bell 430 is believed to have crashed.

8.40 pm - Two SU-30s and an IL-78 midair refueller take off from the Bareilly air base and land back at midnight.

Thursday, Sep 3:

2.15 am - A SU-30 and an IL-78 undertake another mission that lasts till 8.30 am.

6.30 am - Chetak helicopter resumes search mission.

8.30 am - Wreckage of crashed Bell 430 spotted.

9.28 am - Paracommandos slither down to the crash site from a Mi-8 helicopter as no room for chopper to land.

9.30 am - Three more commandos slither down from a Dhruv advanced light helicopter.

10.45 am - Bodies of YSR and four other passengers of the crashed helicopter are winched up to a Dhruv and a Mi-8 helicopter in bags.