Copter crash near Srinagar kills 6 IAF men, 1 civilian
TNN | Feb 27, 2019, 23:09 ISTSRINAGAR: Six IAF men and one civilian were killed in an IAF MI-17 helicopter crash in central Kashmir, about 7km from district headquarters of Budgam, at about 10.10 am on Wednesday.
Soon after take-off at 10am from Srinagar airfield, the MI-17 V5 crashed with a "big bang", said locals, triggering panic in the area called Garend Kalan. It broke into two and caught fire immediately, local officials said. It was on a routine mission, a government statement said, which also added that a court of inquiry has been ordered.
The crash killed two pilots and four personnel of the Air Force. Locals said they heard at least three blasts when the chopper crashed. A portion of the craft exploded and reportedly hit a civilian, who died on the spot. Three others had a miraculous escape, Showkat Hussain, a local, said.
The civilian, Kifayat Ahmad Ganaie (30), son of Mohammad Ramzan Ganie, was on a call with friends some 15m away from the site of the crash. Locals rushed to the spot to find Kifayat dead with severe burn injuries, besides the bodies of the two pilots.
The crash, the cause of which is yet to be ascertained, sparked panic. Visuals of the wrecked fuselage ablaze came early in the day in the backdrop of reports of Pakistani intrusion near Nowshera in Rajouri sector in north Kashmir.
One of the pilots killed was Ninad Mandavgane (32) of Nasik. His daughter had turned two last week, Ninad's father Anil told TOI. "I am a proud father as my son has laid down his life for the country. Ever since he joined IAF we were mentally prepared for any kind of eventuality," he added. Ninad's younger brother is a chartered accountant based in Germany. Ninad's remains will reach Nasik tomorrow.
Pilot Siddharth Sharma (31), whose family lives in Chandigarh, was also killed in the crash on Wednesday morning. Originally from Hameedpur village in Haryana's Ambala district, Sharma is survived by his grandmother, parents, wife and a two-year-old son.
Sergeant Vikrant Sehrawat (32) of Bhadani village in Haryana's Jhajjar district had promised his family just the night before that he would visit them soon if tensions between India and Pakistan did not escalate. Sehrawat is survived by his aged parents, wife Suman Devi and two children - 4-year-old daughter and 18-month-old son. The family received the news around 2pm Wednesday.
Also killed in the crash were corporals Pankaj Kumar of Mathura and Deepak Pandey of Kanpur. Pankaj (27) was home in Mathura in January on a 20-day leave and had returned to Srinagar on February 2. His father, retired subedar Naubat Singh, received the news from an officer at 2:45 pm. Pankaj leaves behind wife and a 15-month-old son.
Naubat Singh told TOI, though he had lost his older son, he wanted a "decisive fight" with Pakistan. " Bahut bache shaheed hue hai ... baar baar kab tak humare bache shaheed honge?" (Many children have been martyred ... till when will this continue?)
Deepak's father in Kanpur, Ram Prakash Pandey said, "Deepak was my only child. He joined IAF five years ago and was posted at Srinagar air base." Kumar Pandey was identified as the fourth IAF personnel who died in the crash.
Meanwhile, Pakistani shelling and heavy exchange of fire continued through the day in the Kamalkote sector of Uri in Baramulla district of north Kashmir. State administration have evacuated all border villages in the Kamalkote area, reports said.
Soon after take-off at 10am from Srinagar airfield, the MI-17 V5 crashed with a "big bang", said locals, triggering panic in the area called Garend Kalan. It broke into two and caught fire immediately, local officials said. It was on a routine mission, a government statement said, which also added that a court of inquiry has been ordered.
The crash killed two pilots and four personnel of the Air Force. Locals said they heard at least three blasts when the chopper crashed. A portion of the craft exploded and reportedly hit a civilian, who died on the spot. Three others had a miraculous escape, Showkat Hussain, a local, said.
The civilian, Kifayat Ahmad Ganaie (30), son of Mohammad Ramzan Ganie, was on a call with friends some 15m away from the site of the crash. Locals rushed to the spot to find Kifayat dead with severe burn injuries, besides the bodies of the two pilots.
The crash, the cause of which is yet to be ascertained, sparked panic. Visuals of the wrecked fuselage ablaze came early in the day in the backdrop of reports of Pakistani intrusion near Nowshera in Rajouri sector in north Kashmir.
One of the pilots killed was Ninad Mandavgane (32) of Nasik. His daughter had turned two last week, Ninad's father Anil told TOI. "I am a proud father as my son has laid down his life for the country. Ever since he joined IAF we were mentally prepared for any kind of eventuality," he added. Ninad's younger brother is a chartered accountant based in Germany. Ninad's remains will reach Nasik tomorrow.
Pilot Siddharth Sharma (31), whose family lives in Chandigarh, was also killed in the crash on Wednesday morning. Originally from Hameedpur village in Haryana's Ambala district, Sharma is survived by his grandmother, parents, wife and a two-year-old son.
Sergeant Vikrant Sehrawat (32) of Bhadani village in Haryana's Jhajjar district had promised his family just the night before that he would visit them soon if tensions between India and Pakistan did not escalate. Sehrawat is survived by his aged parents, wife Suman Devi and two children - 4-year-old daughter and 18-month-old son. The family received the news around 2pm Wednesday.
Also killed in the crash were corporals Pankaj Kumar of Mathura and Deepak Pandey of Kanpur. Pankaj (27) was home in Mathura in January on a 20-day leave and had returned to Srinagar on February 2. His father, retired subedar Naubat Singh, received the news from an officer at 2:45 pm. Pankaj leaves behind wife and a 15-month-old son.
Naubat Singh told TOI, though he had lost his older son, he wanted a "decisive fight" with Pakistan. " Bahut bache shaheed hue hai ... baar baar kab tak humare bache shaheed honge?" (Many children have been martyred ... till when will this continue?)
Deepak's father in Kanpur, Ram Prakash Pandey said, "Deepak was my only child. He joined IAF five years ago and was posted at Srinagar air base." Kumar Pandey was identified as the fourth IAF personnel who died in the crash.
Meanwhile, Pakistani shelling and heavy exchange of fire continued through the day in the Kamalkote sector of Uri in Baramulla district of north Kashmir. State administration have evacuated all border villages in the Kamalkote area, reports said.
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