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What led to helicopter crash in Andamans? Pawan Hans shares details
The incident occurred as PHL Dauphin N3 helicopter was making journey from Sri Vijaya Puram in the Andamans to Rangat and onward journey to Maya Bunder.
A Pawan Hans helicopter, with seven people onboard, crashed into the sea while travelling between Rangat in the North and Maya Bunder in the Middle Andaman Island on Tuesday.
The incident occurred as PHL Dauphin N3 helicopter, bearing registration number VT PHY, was making journey from Sri Vijaya Puram (Port Blair) in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to Rangat and onward journey to Maya Bunder.
The seven people onboard, including two crew members and five passengers, were all safe and rescued after the crash.
How did the crash happened?
The incident took place at around 9:30 am on Tuesday after the chopper took off from Rangat to Maya Bunder, Pawan Hans said in a statement on X. Pawan Hans Ltd is a central public sector undertaking based in Noida.
Also Read: Pawan Hans helicopter crashes into sea before landing near Mayabunder
"The helicopter landed at Rangat helipad around 0905 hours. It further took off from Rangat to Maya Bunder at around 0910 hours," the statement said.
However, the helicopter soon encountered a problem and plunged into the shallow water near its destination, a helipad in Maya Bunder in the Middle Andaman Island.
"The helicopter ditched about 300 meters short of Maya Bunder helipad in the sea (shallow water) at around 0930 hours," the statement said.
A senior Civil Aviation official told PTI that an initial probe revealed that there was some technical snag, following which the pilot made a crash-landing on the sea.
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All passengers, crew members safe
Pawan Hans said there were 5 passengers and 2 crew members on board, adding that all passengers and crew have been safely retrieved.
"A total of seven people were onboard, including the pilot. All are safe, and we are yet to take the statement of the pilot. All injured persons are undergoing treatment at Dr Rajendra Prasad Hospital in Mayabunder. We are trying to bring the injured people to Sri Vijaya Puram," Civil Aviation Director Nitesh Rawat reportedly said.
