Pilot killed as Army chopper crash-lands in J-K’s Kathua, another injured

Chandigarh/Jammu, January 25

A pilot was killed after an advanced light helicopter (ALH) Dhruv of Army Aviation Corps crash-landed near Lakhanpur in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday evening, officials said.

The chopper, which was coming from Pathankot, was forced to make a crash-landing in an Army area in the Lakhanpur belt of the district, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Kathua Shailendra Mishra told PTI.

Two pilots of the helicopter were injured in the incident, he said, adding that they were rushed to a military base hospital.

One of them succumbed subsequently, an official said.

“Tragic news coming in. We have one pilot fatal casualty,” a defence spokesperson, said.

According to sources, the helicopter was on a routine operational mission and a technical snag is suspected to be the reason for the crash.

A utility helicopter, Dhruv has been designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and has been inducted all three defence services besides other operators. It also has an armed version. TNS/PTI