Four dead in Pawan Hans helicopter mishap near ONGC's rig at Mumbai High

Four people lost their lives on Tuesday after a Pawan Hans helicopter carrying nine passengers fell into the Arabian Sea while trying to land at state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation’s (ONGC) Sagar Kiran rig at Mumbai High.  

Three of the four dead were ONGC employees. The incident happened at around 11.45 am on Tuesday, one nautical mile away from Sagar Kiran. The helicopter managed to stay afloat with the help of attached floaters. After the accident, a Regional Contingency Plan (RCP) was immediately activated, with the Indian Navy and Coast Guard coming for the rescue operations. 

Five people were rescued by Offshore Supply Vessel Malviya-16. Other ONGC vessels near the location were also mobilised for search and rescue operations. The company said that an enquiry had been ordered into the incident. In addition, a team of officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation was also looking into the events that led to the mishap.

The helicopter that crashed on Tuesday was reportedly a new Sikorsky S-76D, which Pawan Hans had taken recently on lease from Milestone Aviation Group.

The helicopter, which had a total of six ONGC personnel onboard and another official from a contracting firm, was forced to land on floaters attached to the choppers.

According to the company, the four deceased were rescued using a Navy chopper and were unconscious when brought to the base and taken to the hospital. “Unfortunately, they could not survive. ONGC deeply mourns this tragic loss of lives; ONGC is reaching out to the affected families and extending all possible support,” the firm said. 

Mumbai High, formerly Bombay High, is one of the largest offshore oilfields in India, located in the Arabian Sea, approximately 176 kilometer west of the Mumbai coast. The area consists of two blocks, called Mumbai High North and Mumbai High South, which started production in 1976.

The current incident comes just over a year after an ONGC contractor’s accommodation barge Papaa-305 (P-305) and tugboat Varaprada were hit by Cyclone Tauktae, killing 86 workers on May 17 last year. A total of 274 people were affected then. Later, three officials of the company were suspended following an enquiry.