U'khand chopper crash: All 6 killed, bodies found; contact lost 2 mins after take off

NEW DELHI: The six people on board a helicopter operated by Trans Bharat Aviation died after it crashed near Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Friday afternoon. The helicopter was travelling from Badrinath to Dehradun when it crashed into a hillside near Chai village."All six people on board chopper that crashed in Joshimath have died, their bodies found," Chamoli Superintendent of Police Surjit Singh Panwar told PTI.The helicopter took off from Badrinath for Sahastradhara Heliport at 1.14 pm.

Authorities lost track of it while it was crossing the Joshimath Valley and it was subsequently reported missing near Hathi Parvat.Search and rescue teams, including personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), the Army, police and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), were deployed to the area following reports of the crash.Flyers from Bengaluru; names of those on boardAccording to the available details, six people were on board the helicopter, including the pilot and five passengers, all reportedly from Bengaluru.

Their identities are as follows:Pilot: Captain HimanshuPassengers:Prathapa (Male)Arun (Male)Shankar Gowda (Male)Sudheer K (Male)H S Natraja (Male)Helicopter lost contact while crossing Joshimath Speaking to PTI in Dehradun, Prateek Jain, CEO of the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA), said "the helicopter took off from Badrinath for Sahastradhara Heliport at 1.14 pm today.

As it was crossing the Joshimath Valley, we suddenly lost track of it on our tracking system, which we use to monitor its movements. We have also received some local information regarding the incident.""So far, nothing has been confirmed. However, according to the information available in the passenger manifest, a total of six people were on board the helicopter, the pilot and five passengers.

The helicopter's location has not yet been traced. However, search and rescue teams have been mobilised in coordination with the Chamoli district administration," he said."The SDRF has also been deployed, along with a unit of the Army. As soon as the weather clears, we will send another rescue helicopter from here to locate the missing helicopter," Jain added.Local inputs about the incident also prompted authorities to initiate a search operation.Chopper showing near Army Camp above Chai villageSub-Inspector Manohar Kanyal of Joshimath police post said information about the incident was received from the Joshimath sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) at 2.21 pm."At 14:21 hrs, information was received from the SDM Joshimath regarding the crash landing of a helicopter above Chai village in the Joshimath area," Kanyal told ANI."In this regard, UCADA officials stated that the location of a Trans Bharat helicopter, which was flying from Badrinath to Sahastradhara, is showing near the Army Camp above Chai village.

Complete details regarding the crash or crash landing are not yet available," he added.Entire Trans Bharat Aviation helicopter fleet groundedSpeaking to ANI, Jain said the helicopter belonged to Trans Bharat Aviation and confirmed that the company’s entire fleet had been grounded as a precautionary measure."A helicopter belonging to Trans Bharat Aviation departed from Badrinath for the Sahastradhara heliport at 1:14 PM.

We have been unable to trace the helicopter's location since it was passing through the vicinity of the Joshimath valley. Upon receiving this information, we mobilised the Chamoli district administration, the SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), and an Army unit to the area near the incident site to prepare for a proper rescue operation," he said."As a precautionary measure, the entire fleet of helicopters belonging to Trans Bharat Aviation has been grounded...According to initial information, there were 6 people on board—the pilot plus 5 others.

We will share further details once we have confirmation..." he added.The grounding is a precautionary step as authorities work to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash.Rescue teams deployed near Chai villageUttarakhand disaster management officials in Chamoli district said teams had rushed to the area to conduct search and rescue operations. Police, SDRF, Army and ITBP personnel were dispatched to the reported crash site.The location of the helicopter and the condition of the people on board remained unclear in the initial hours after the incident.

Authorities were coordinating with the district administration and other agencies to locate the aircraft and assess the situation.It was also not immediately confirmed whether the helicopter was returning after ferrying pilgrims from the Badrinath shrine.CM Pushkar Singh Dhami monitors situationUttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said he was closely monitoring the situation and that a joint rescue operation was under way.In a post on X, Dhami said, "Reports have been received regarding an unfortunate helicopter crash near Chai village, close to Joshimath.

A joint rescue operation is being conducted by the district administration, the Disaster Management Department, and the SDRF.""I am personally monitoring the situation closely. I have issued instructions to ensure that those who are critically injured are immediately airlifted to a higher-level medical facility for better treatment. I pray to God for the safety of the passengers," Dhami added.The state government said the rescue operation was being coordinated by the district administration and disaster management authorities.Uttarakhand sees heavy rain, snowfallThe crash took place amid adverse weather conditions in Uttarakhand, with rainfall and snowfall reported in several parts of the state.Television channels reported that fire and smoke were visible at the crash site and that rescue teams had reached the area.

Bad weather was suspected to have contributed to the incident, though the cause had not been officially established.Kedarnath Dham witnessed the season's first heavy snowfall following continuo…