In yet another mishap, a 50-year-old Australian paraglider of Indian origin died in a crash at Joginder Nagar area of Mandi district in Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday.

The deceased was identified as Sanjay KR Devarkonda.

Baijnath sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Vikas Shukla said Devarkonda went missing after he took off from Bir Billing paragliding site. A rescue operation was launched and his location was traced near Joginder Nagar.

He, however, died before the rescue team could reach him.

The SDM said the pilot had crash landed in a forest after loosing control of his paraglider and sustained fatal injuries.

His body was brought to Joginder Nagar hospital for postmortem.

The officials have informed the Australian embassy about the mishap.

So far, two foreigners have died in similar mishaps. A Singaporean pilot had died after crash landing in Dhauladhar mountain on Monday.

A Spanish pilot who was stuck in Dhauladhar range for five days was rescued on Wednesday.

Two more pilots, a Russian and a Latvian, were injured in mishaps last week.

Bir-Billing valley is set to host the pre-world championship slated from October 27 to November 4. A large number of foreigners have already arrived for the tournament.

First Published: Oct 25, 2018 13:56 IST