Rajnath Singh briefed on results of Coonoor helicopter crash probe

A tri-services investigation into the helicopter crash that killed Chief of Defense Staff Bipin Rawat and multiple army officials on December 8 in Coonoor, Tamil Nadu has concluded and the results of the investigation have been communicated to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh a report in the Hindustan Times said citing confidential informants.

The investigation team has completed its probe into the crash of the Russian-origin Mi-17V5 helicopter. The court of inquiry into the crash was headed by Air Marshal Manavendra Singh of the Indian Air Force (IAF). A senior helicopter pilot of the Indian Navy and an army officer were part of the investigation team. Singh, who heads the IAF's training command in Bengaluru, is considered a leading air crash investigator.

A team of Russian military helicopter experts were also called in to ascertain the cause of the crash.

It was initially suggested that the helicopter carrying CDS Rawat, his wife and 12 others including senior army officials, was a result of technical error. However recent reports suggest that the probe team uncovered the fact that the crash could have been a result of trying a controlled descent in unfamiliar territory after the helicopter ran into low-lying clouds.

Besides the CDS, his wife Madhulika, his defence adviser Brig LS Lidder, staff officer Lt Col Harjinder Singh and Group Captain Varun Singh were among those killed in the crash. Singh was initially the sole survivor of the crash but died due to the severity of his injuries at a hospital in Bengaluru.

The report by the Hindustan Times also suggests that new directives for flights with senior officials could be framed as a result of the probe team's findings which have not been made public yet.