General Bipin Rawat, India's chief of defence staff, second left, during the Air Force Day Parade. (Photographer: T. Narayan/Bloomberg)
4 years ago
Dec 09, 2021
India's first Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and his wife are among 13 people who were killed in the Indian Air Force chopper crash reported earlier on Wednesday.
A tri-service inquiry headed by Air Marshal Manvendra Singh has been ordered into the IAF helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in Lok Sabha.
The Air Force Mi-17V5 helicopter took off from Sulur Air Base at 11:48 a.m. on Wednesday and was expected to land at Wellington by 12:15 p.m., said Singh. Air Traffic Control at Sulur Air Base lost contact with the helicopter at 12:08 p.m.
All those recovered from the wreckage were rushed to the Military Hospital in Wellington. "Out of the 14 people on-board, 13 have succumbed to their injuries. Group Captain Varun Singh is on life support in the Military Hospital at Wellington and all efforts are being made to save his life."
The minister said that the Chief Of Defence Staff will be cremated with full military honours and "the last rites of other military personnel will be performed with appropriate military honour," he added.
The last rites of Chief of Defence Staff General #BipinRawat and his wife Madhulika Rawat will be performed tomorrow in Delhi Cantonment. Their mortal remains are expected to arrive in the National Capital in a military plane by this evening. pic.twitter.com/f3bscF30fV
Mortal remains of CDS #GeneralBipinRawat and others kept at the Military Hospital at Wellington; the remains will be shifted to Madras Regimental Centre and then be taken to Sulur Air Base in Coimbatore, from where they will be flown by a special aircraft to New Delhi tomorrow
