Pune (Maharashtra): At least three people, including two pilots and an aircraft engineer, were believed killed when a helicopter flying over the Bavdhan district of Pune crashed in the hilly terrain, officials said on Wednesday.
The helicopter had taken off from Oxford Golf Club for a journey to Juhu Airport in Mumbai and is believed to have crashed around 7.50 a.m., just three to four minutes after taking off, in a thick fog, according to a police officer speaking from the site of the disaster.
This is the second instance of its kind in the Pune hills, following the crash of a private helicopter on a Mumbai-Hyderabad flight on August 24, which injured four people, and the May 3 accident of a helicopter flying to pick up Shiv Sena (UBT) politician Sushma Andhare near a helipad in Raigad.
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According to Bharatiya Janata Party Minister Chandrakant Patil, the incident could have been caused by a technical problem and suspected low visibility, which would be investigated.
Unverified reports have revealed that the ruling Nationalist Congress Party’s state president, Sunil Tatkare, was going to fly aboard the same ill-fated helicopter. The helicopter was travelling to Mumbai to pick up Tatkare for a day flight after visiting several locations in Beed on Tuesday.
An official said, a caller informed police control of the disaster, and a team was promptly assembled, including the local fire department, to rush to the crash site, which was located in a mountainous and highly forested area of the ghats.
The police have also contacted the local aviation authorities, and a team of experts is arriving from Mumbai to investigate the tragedy.
The Hinjewadi Police Station and aviation officials are working together to examine the incident and other information, such as identifying the fatalities and transporting their remains for autopsy.
More information is awaited.
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–IANS
