Chopper crash: Hry pilot dies in Mumbai hospital
Capt Penny Chaudhary suffered a head injury in the crash and had been on life support for 17 days at naval hospital in Mumbai before succumbing to her injuries
MUMBAI : The co-pilot of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) helicopter, which crashed in Raigad district of Maharashtra, earlier this month, died on Tuesday night after battling for life for 17 days at the naval hospital in Mumbai. Penny Chaudhary hailed from Karnal.
MUMBAI: The woman co-pilot of an Indian Coast Guard (ICG) helicopter that crashed in Maharashtra’s Raigad district earlier this month died on Tuesday night after battling for life for 17 days at the naval hospital in Colaba, Mumbai.
ICG spokesperson Avinandan Mitra confirmed that co-pilot Penny Chaudhary had died. “Chaudhary had suffered a head injury during the crash, and there was internal bleeding after the helicopter’s rotor struck her head. She had been on life support following a brain surgery at the naval hospital,” Mitra said.
Chaudhary, a native of Karnal, Haryana, joined the ICG in 2013. The 26-year-old officer had 555 flying hours to her credit. “She was a brilliant, soft-spoken officer and popular among her colleagues for her professionalism and social conduct,” a Coast Guard official said.
The helicopter crashed on March 10 near Nandgaon village in Murud during a routine sortie. It had four people on board when the crash took place, including deputy commandant and pilot Balwinder Singh, Chaudhary and two divers.
The chopper started descending suddenly after its engine stopped working in mid-air. Singh and Chaudhary used the rotor’s movement to glide the chopper towards the shore, and prevented it from crashing into the sea. They attempted to land it on a sandy section of the beach, but it landed on a rocky patch.
The Navy sent two Chetak helicopters and a Sea King ‘C’ chopper on a search-and-rescue mission and located the helicopter. All four crew members were rescued and taken to the naval hospital. The other three survived.
THE 26YEAROLD INDIAN COAST GUARD ASSISTANT COMMANDANT HAD 555 FLYING HOURS TO HER CREDIT; THE OTHER THREE MEMBERS SURVIVED THE CRASH