Bhubaneswar: An Odia Jawan has lost his life on Wednesday after the military chopper (IAF Mi-17 V5) crashed shortly after take-off in Tamil Nadu. The deceased Odia Jawan has been identified as Rana Pratap Das of Talcher in Angul district.
Reportedly, Rana Pratap Das served in the Air Force as a Junior Warrant Officer. He was a native of Krishnachandrapur village.
As many as 13 people, including Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika Rawat, have lost their lives in the army chopper crash.
It is to be noted that, the crash took place near Coonoor of Tamil Nadu while General Rawat had taken a flight from Delhi to Sulur in Coimbatore. The chopper mishap took place shortly after the Russian-made Mi-17 V5 chopper took off from the Air Force base in Sulur for Wellington in the Nilgiri Hills.
Brigadier L.S. Lidder, Lieutenant Colonel Harjinder Singh, Naik Gursewak Singh, Naik Jitender Kumar, Naik Vivek Kumar, Naik B. Sai Teja, Havaldar Satpal, and pilots were among 14 others who were on board.
Sole survivor, Group Captain Varun Singh, is being treated for 90 percent burn injuries, said Indian Air Force.
According to sources, the body of CDS Bipin Rawat will reach Delhi this evening following which the funeral ceremony for Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika will take place tomorrow.
The Indian Air Force team has ordered an investigation into how and under what circumstances the Air Force chopper crashed in Tamil Nadu.
Also read: Army chopper crash: Not ‘rare’, but air crash of such magnitude occurred last in 1963
Ms Kalinga