5 injured in copter crash

Five persons, including four members of a business delegation from Philippines, were injured when a helicopter of the Vapi-based Micro Inks crashed on Wednesday.

"The helicopter was coming from Mumbai, and developed a technical snag while landing at Micro Ink's own helipad at Vapi at around 3 pm on Wednesday, resulting in the crash. The exact nature or the reason behind the problem is yet to be ascertained," an official of Micro Inks said requesting anonymity.

The company official said the five injured were taken to Haria Hospital in Vapi, from where two of them, including Captain Jiten Rana, were shifted to Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai, in a helicopter.

The condition of all the injured is stable. The official said the pilot and the four passengers had a lucky escape, as the helicopter was flying at a height of just around three feet from the ground, when it crashed.

The official informed that a five-member team of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation reached Vapi on Wednesday evening, and is investigating the reason behind the crash.

Police sources said the helicopter was bought by Micro Inks from the France-based Euro Copter Company, two years back.