Pilots Who Flew Crashed Dhruv Were Experienced. Chopper Has a History of Crashes

The Indian Army's Dhruv helicopter that crashed in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday had two very experienced men flying it.

Lieutenant-Colonel Rajesh Gulati and his co-pilot Major Taher Hussain Khan had flown thousands of hours. Lieutenant Colonel Gulati was even a flight instructor - a position that entails flying over 1000 hours.

During Operation Meghrahat - the Army's flood relief mission in Kashmir - they had braved stones thrown at their choppers. They had always managed to accomplish their mission. But, yesterday something went horribly wrong.

The Army has ordered an inquiry into the incident. "We are looking at two possibilities -- a technical failure or an error of judgment by the pilots," a senior officer of the Indian Army told NDTV.

The possibilities of error judgment, however, is slim, admit officers. The aircraft was inducted into service in the early 2000s, but complaints have persisted.

The chopper that crashed yesterday was the seventh Dhruv to have a fatal end since 2005. Altogether, the army has lost 16 machines since 2002.

Ecuador too had imported a few of these machines but had to ground them following crashes.

Last July, the Indian Air Force (IAF) had lost two officers and five personnel when a Dhruv chopper crashed in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh. Late last night, search teams of the Indian Army recovered the charred bodies of the two pilots from the Kurshu forest.

The indigenously-built Advanced Light Helicopter - is a twin engine aircraft which weighs about five tons and is manufactured by Government-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

The Indian Army files about 60 of these machines in six squadrons. Between the three forces - Army, Navy and Air Force - there are over 130 Dhruvs in active service.  

Major Khan who had spent about 5 years in the Army is from Hyderabad and had married last year. Lieutenant-Colonel Gulati, who had put in 14 years in the army, is survived by a wife and a 10-year-old son.