An IAF chopper carrying Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat, his wife and 12 others crashed in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday.
“An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu. An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident,” the Indian Air Force tweeted.
An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu.
— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) December 8, 2021
An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has informed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the developments. According to sources, Singh will brief Parliament on the incident tomorrow.
According to reports, 11 of the 14 people have died.
Tamil Nadu forest minister K. Ramachandran has reached the spot and noted that five people have died and two are critical. Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin and IAF Chief V.R. Chaudhari are also scheduled to reach the site soon. Defence minister Rajnath Singh is expected to address parliament on the matter tomorrow, December 9.
