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Technician dies in J&K army chopper crash
The pilots had reported a technical fault in their advanced light helicopter to the Air Traffic Controller before the precautionary landing in Machna area between Marwah and Dachhan, a defence official said.
JAMMU: A technician died while a pilot and his co-pilot suffered injuries after an Army Aviation chopper crash landed on the banks of Marua river in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Thursday, officials aware of the details said.
The pilots had reported a technical fault in their advanced light helicopter (ALH) to the Air Traffic Controller (ATC) before the precautionary landing in Machna area between Marwah and Dachhan, a defence official said.
The technician who succumbed to his injuries at the Command Hospital in Udhampur was identified as craftsman Pabballa Anil.
“#LtGenUpendraDwivedi, #ArmyCdrNC & All Ranks #NorthernCommand offer tribute to supreme sacrifice of CFN (Avn Tech) Pabballa Anil, in the line of duty during Operational flying of ALH MK III near #Kishtwar #JammuKashmir & offer deepest condolences to the bereaved family,” Northern Command wrote on its Twitter handle.
The incident comes on the back of the three services and the coast guard grounding their entire fleets of the indigenous ALH in March for a comprehensive safety check after an Indian Navy ALH ditched into the Arabian Sea on March 8 following unexplained loss of power. The choppers were cleared for flying in phases after the safety checks.
Jammu-based defence spokesperson Lt Col Devender Anand said, “At about 1115 hours (11.15am), an Army Aviation ALH Dhruv helicopter on an operational mission made a precautionary landing on the banks of Marua river in the Kishtwar region.”
He added: “As per inputs, the pilots had reported a technical fault to the Air Traffic Controller (ATC) and proceeded for a precautionary landing. Due to the undulating ground, undergrowth and unprepared landing area, the helicopter apparently made a hard landing.”
Soon after the incident, army rescue teams were rushed to the site.
“Two pilots and a technician were on board. All three injured personnel were evacuated to Command Hospital, Udhampur, where the technician Pabballa Anil succumbed to his injuries,” said Col Anand.
A Court of Inquiry has been ordered. Further details are being ascertained.
The region has been witnessing rain, snowfall and cloudy weather for the past two to three days.
The military’s ALH fleets were grounded for the second time in less than five months in March. The platform was last grounded in October 2022 after an army Rudra helicopter, an armed version of ALH Dhruv, crashed in Arunachal Pradesh, killing all five personnel on board. To be sure, it is not uncommon for an aircraft fleet to be grounded for inspection after an unexplained crash or incident.
The ALH Dhruv is a twin engine, multi-mission helicopter in the 5.5-tonne class. The three services operate around 300 variants of the ALH, with the army accounting for the most — 96 ALHs and 75 armed versions called Rudra. The air force operates around 70 ALHs while the rest are operated by the navy and the coast guard.
ALH operations have been hit in the past too – the helicopters were grounded in 2006 following tail rotor problems, and later again in 2014 after a fatal crash.
