IAF chopper topples during emergency landing, pilots safe

A Chetak helicopter of the Indian Air Force (IAF) toppled while making an emergency landing during a routine training sortie from Bamrauli airbase near Allahabad on Wednesday. Both the pilots are safe. The chopper toppled when the pilots tried a forced landing after it developed a technical snag nearly 1 km from Basic Flying Training School (BFTS), located at Bamrauli airbase, IAF officials said.

“The IAF has ordered a court of inquiry (CoI) to ascertain the cause of the accident. There is no damage to civil property,” said PRO (defence), Allahabad, group captain BB Pandey.

An army trainee pilot was being given training on the chopper by an IAF pilot instructor. The chopper took off from the training school at around 6 am and developed a trouble in the engine around 7 am.

The chopper toppled when the pilots tried to force land it on an uneven field in Gauspur Kataula village under Pipri police station.

The Basic Flying Training School was established on December 16, 1987, and budding aviators of the Indian Army undergo rigorous ab-initio flying and ground training that lasts five months.

They get basic training at Army Training Wing (ATW), Jhansi, and Basic Flying Training School (BFTS), Allahabad. Army officers from various disciplines graduate to fully combat-ready aviators only after 12-13 months of rigorous training in operational or combat aviation at the Combat Army Aviation Training School (CATS).