Former defence minister KC Pant passes away

India’s former defence minister and deputy chairman of Planning Commission Krishna Chandra Pant passed away Delhi on Thursday morning at the age of 81.

Indian Defence Minister AK Antony expressed his “profound grief” at the demise of the ex-minister who held the command of the ministry during critical times like the deployment of the Indian troops in Sri Lanka and to preempt a coup attempt in Maldives. 

“Pant steered the Ministry at one of the most critical junctures of history as the Indian Peace Keeping Forces were deployed in Sri Lanka as a stepping stone to the tortuous journey for peace in the island nation.  The Indian troops were also deployed at short notice in Maldives to abort a coup attempt, in a clear manifestation of our commitment to the promotion of peace and stability in South Asian Region,” Antony said in his condolence message.

In his political career Pant was in 12 ministries and he was country’s defence minister form 1987-89, in the Rajiv Gandhi government.

Pant has been instrumental in key acquisitions for the armed forces as the British-built aircraft carrier HMS Hermes – rechristened as INS Viraat for the Indian Navy and MiG-29 fighter jets for the Indian Air Force.   

“Pant bolstered the Indian Armed Forces in a big way with the acquisition of the country’s flagship aircraft carrier INS Viraat and Mig-29 aircraft among many other acquisitions during his tenure as the Defence Minister.

“He was also instrumental in the setting up of the first Coast Guard Air Station at Daman. May his soul rest in peace,” Antony added.

RIP: Nine dead as IAF helicopters collide mid-air

Its a big tragedy for the Indian Air Force (IAF) as it lost nine lives when two of its helicopters on routine training sortie went down near Jamnagar airbase, Gujarat. The accident is being termed as the first mid-air collision of two helicopters for the force. 

The two Russian-built Mi-17 helicopters took off from the air base at 12 pm and it crashed five minutes later near Sarmat range, eight kms from the airbase.

File photo-Mi-17

According to sources, “The two helicopters were flying in close formation as required by the mission objectives. They were to conduct firing practice at the range.”

Nine people on board – including two pilots, co-pilots and crew member perished. “The pilots were senior officers belonging to the TACDE (Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment. Three Wing Commanders, one Squadron Leader, one Flying Officer and four other ranks were onboard the ill-fated helicopter,” sources added. 

Prima facie it seems to be a mid-air collision but the exact reasons behind the crash cannot be zeroed in before a court of inquiry. After collision one of the helicopters is said to have caught fire. “Immediately following the crash, a helicopter was rushed to the site to evacuate survivors. Only three people could be evacuated but nobody survived the tragedy,” sources added.

The pilots, from the Gwalior airbase in Madhya Pradesh, had come to the Jamnagar airbase as part of training. “There can be 100 reasons behind the collision. It could be a technical malfunction, air drift, vibrations or human error. In formations the helicopters do fly close, during display some machines fly even as close as 10 metres from each other,” a military aviator said.

The tragedy has sent shockwaves across the organization that faced slew of crashes in 2011 and beginning 2012. This is the fourth air crash for the IAF this year. Earlier in the year, two Mirage fighter jets and one Kiran trainer aircraft had nosedived. In one of the Mirage crashes, a top ranking IAF official had a close shave.

In 2010 an IAF MI-17 helicopter had crashed at Bomdir near Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, killing all 12 defence personnel on board. The victims included an Army official of the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and 11 IAF personnel, including two pilots. In another air tragedy of this scale in 2009, 13 people had perished in 2009 when the IAF’s workhorse An-32 crashed in heavily forested Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh.

R.I.P

17 killed as avalanche hits Army camp

17 Army men, including a young officer Lt Prateek, were killed as two avalanches hit army establishments in Sonamarg and Davar. An acclimatisation camp was going on at the High Altitude Warfare School, few kilometers away from Gulmarg. Many soldiers were still reported missing.

Bad weather is obstructing the rescue operations as no helicopter has been able to reach the afflicted area. The Army personnel are physically involved in the Search and Rescue operations even as mercury continued to plummet further. The avalanche was so strong that it destroyed even the permanent structures and inflicting heavy casualty.