IAF chopper crash: Who all were in Mi-17V5 helicopter

Besides CDS Rawat and his wife, Brigadier LS Lidder, Lieutenant Colonel Harjinder Singh, NK Gursewak Singh, NK Jitendra Kumar, L/NK Vivek Kumar, L/NK B Sai Teja and Hav Satpal were also present in the helicopter.

Pic Courtesy: ANI

New Delhi: Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and 11 others were killed in the military chopper crash near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu on Wednesday (December 8).

Taking to Twitter, the Indian Air Force confirmed the deaths of 13 people including the CDS. Further, IAF said, “Gp Capt Varun Singh SC, Directing Staff at DSSC with injuries is currently under treatment at Military Hospital, Wellington.”

Gp Capt Varun Singh SC, Directing Staff at DSSC with injuries is currently under treatment at Military Hospital, Wellington. — Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) December 8, 2021

The Indian Army also consoled the 13 deaths. “General MM Naravane COAS & All Ranks of Indian Army pay heartfelt condolences on the untimely demise of General Bipin Rawat CDS, Mrs Madhulika Rawat & 11 other passengers on board, in an unfortunate air crash at Coonoor,” the official handle said. 

The dynamic and inspiring leadership of General Bipin Rawat shall remain eternally etched in our memories. The #IndianArmedForces will forever remain indebted to his invaluable contributions. (2/n) pic.twitter.com/0V2kcMtNUX

— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) December 8, 2021

“The dynamic and inspiring leadership of General Bipin Rawat shall remain eternally etched in our memories. The Indian Armed Forces will forever remain indebted to his invaluable contributions,” the Army added.

The IAF had earlier released the list of those present in the copter crash that occurred at noon. The list included Brigadier LS Lidder, Lieutenant Colonel Harjinder Singh, NK Gursewak Singh, NK Jitendra Kumar, L/NK Vivek Kumar, L/NK B Sai Teja and Hav Satpal. 

Indian Air Force’s Group Captain Varun Singh, injured in the military chopper crash, was awarded Shaurya Chakra on this year’s Independence Day for saving his LCA Tejas fighter aircraft during an aerial emergency in 2020, ANI reported. 

General Rawat was on his way from the Sulur IAF Station to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington in Coonoor when the IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter crashed near Katteri-Nanchappanchathram area. 

The IAF has ordered a Court of Inquiry into the accident, involving a Mi-17VH chopper that took from the Sulur IAF Station. 

Meanwhile, the meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) is underway. The last CCS meeting was held in August in the backdrop of the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan in the wake of the Taliban takeover. 

(With agency inputs)