A Cheetah helicopter of the Indian Army crashed near Mandla in Arunachal Pradesh today. The helicopter was performing an operational sortie near Bomdila, Arunachal Pradesh when a loss of contact was reported from Air Traffic Control (ATC) at about 09:15 hrs on 16 Mar 23. Search parties have been organised, and operations are on to look for the crew in the helicopter.
“An Army Aviation Cheetah helicopter flying an operational sortie near Bomdila, Arunachal Pradesh was reported to have lost ATC contact at about 09:15 hrs today morning. It is reported to have crashed near Mandla, west of Bomdila. Search teams has been launched,” said Lt Col Mahendra Rawat, PRO Defense Guwahati
It is to be noted that Arunachal Pradesh is considered to be one of the most unfavorable places for aircraft operations. Moreover, the northeastern state has witnessed several plane crashes in the past. In October 2022, an Indian Army ALH helicopter crashed in Migging, Arunachal Pradesh, killing five personnel including two pilots.
An Army Aviation Cheetah helicopter flying an operational sortie near Bomdila in Arunachal Pradesh was reported lost by ATC at around 09:15 am today. The crash was reported near Mandla, west of Bomdila. Search teams have been launched: Lt Col… https://t.co/DZmOie1Yon– ANI (@ANI) March 16, 2023
The helicopter involved in the accident is said to be a Cheetah helicopter, one of the older choppers in the fleet of the Army and the Indian Air Force. The aging fleet of the above helicopters will be replaced by indigenously developed Light Utility Helicopters (LUH). These new generation helicopters will be included in the three ton category and will be equipped with advanced features.
More details are awaited.