Defence Minister's Statement On General Bipin Rawat's Crash: Complete Text
NDTV
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh extended his condolences to the families of those who died. The Parliament also observed a silence in honour of the departed souls.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh today briefed the Parliament on Army helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu that left Chief Of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 11 others dead. The defence minister extended his condolences to the families of those who died. The Parliament also observed a silence in honour of the departed souls.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's Full Statement On Army Helicopter Crash:
With profound grief and heavy heart, I stand to convey the unfortunate news of the crash of the military helicopter in the noon of 8th December 2021, with India's first Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Bipin Rawat onboard.
Gen Bipin Rawat was on a scheduled visit to Defence ServicesStaff College, Wellington to interact with the student Officers. The Air Force Mi 17 V 5 helicopter took off from Sulur Air Base at 11:48 AM yesterday and was expected to land at Wellington by 12:15 PM. Air Traffic Control at Sulur Air Base lost contact with the helicopter at approximately 12:08 PM. Subsequently, few locals spotted a fire in the forest near Coonoor and rushed to the spot where they observed the wreckage of military helicopter engulfed in flames. Rescue teams from the local administration in the vicinity reached the site and attempted to recover the survivors from the crash site.
