New Delhi, March 6, 2013-An Indian Navy chopper crashed off the Visakhapatnam harbour in Andhra Pradesh causing injuries to two persons on Tuesday. While two of the four crew members were rescued, two others were missing.
According to officials, the single-engine Chetak helicopter crashed in the Bay of Bengal about 10 km from the coast south of Vizag.
Officials said the aircraft – used for logistic support and surveillance – was on a routine sortie when it developed some technical problem.
The authorities were looking into the matter considering it to be an accidental crash. Coast Guard and Vizag Port Trust were searching for the two missing crew members.
Navy has pressed into service its helicopters and ships to search for the missing personnel, they said.
The Navy has ordered a Board of Inquiry to investigate the reasons behind the crash of the light utility chopper, they said.
The Cheetah and Chetak choppers are Indian license built versions of the French Arospatiale Alouette II and Arospatiale Alouette III and are the vintage of the 60s and the 70s. They are the mainstay of the armed forces for ferrying small groups of personnel and light loads.
The Navy has already initiated the process for acquiring 56 new light choppers with twin-engines for replacing the vintage choppers.
