An Army chopper with Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat on board crashed in Coonoor, Tamil Nadu today a short while. The nine passengers on board included members of General Rawat's staff and family.
On Twitter, the Indian Air Force confirmed that the Chief of Defence Staff was on board. He had flown from Delhi to Sulur earlier in the day.
"An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter carrying CDS Gen Bipin Rawat was involved in an accident in Coonoor, Tamil Nadu, today." An investigation into the cause of the accident has been ordered. The Mi-series chopper crashed in the Nilgiris immediately after taking off from the army camp in Sulur.
The chopper was on its way to the Wellington defence base. Images broadcast on local television stations showed the devastation in the hills with rescuers working amid thick smoke and fire.
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