CDS Bipin Rawat Chopper Crash: What Parliamentary Panel Report Reveals After 3 Years

The parliamentary committee, in its report, attributed the MI-17 V5 helicopter crash on December 8, 2021, to human error.

First Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat

New Delhi: The report of the parliamentary committee formed to investigate the death of the country’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, has been released. The committee, in its report, attributed the MI-17 V5 helicopter crash on December 8, 2021, to human error. General Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat, and several other armed forces personnel lost their lives when their military helicopter crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu. The accident was widely reported in the media. 

What The Parliamentary Panel Report Said 

General Rawat's helicopter crashed into a hillside near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu, three years ago. On Tuesday, the Standing Committee on Defence presented its findings in the Lok Sabha, citing "human error (aircrew)" as the cause of the incident. An earlier IAF probe had ruled out negligence, mechanical failure, or sabotage. 

The report, prepared by the Committee, also detailed aircraft crashes in the Indian Air Force during the 13th Defence Plan period. It recorded 34 crashes, including nine in 2021-22 and 11 in 2018-19. Under the column titled "Cause," human error was listed as the reason for these accidents. 

The defence ministry informed the Committee that inquiries were conducted for all 34 incidents. Recommendations from these inquiries aim to address process, procedure, training, equipment, and operational aspects to prevent future accidents. 

2021 Chopper Crash 

The sole survivor of Mi-17V5 crash, Group Captain Varun Singh, a Shaurya Chakra awardee, initially survived but succumbed to his injuries a week later during treatment. He had been shifted from Wellington to a military hospital in Bengaluru and had sustained severe burns.