 "Helicopter carrying six pilgrims loses control in Kedarnath: Watch video")
A helicopter carrying seven people, including six pilgrims and the pilot, made an emergency landing early on Friday after experiencing a technical issue while attempting to land at the Kedarnath shrine helipad. The passengers are said to have narrowly escaped a major tragedy and are reported to be safe.
The doors of Kedarnath were opened on May 10, 2024 and will likely remain open until Kartik Purnima (November 15). The Chardham Yatra in Uttarakhand comprises of visiting four temples i.e. Yamunotri, Kedarnath, Badrinath, and Gangotri.
Helicopter in Kedarnath makes emergency landing: Insights
Rudraprayag district magistrate Dr Saurabh Gaharwar stated that, “Today at around 7am, a helicopter of Kestrel Aviation company, carrying six passengers along with a pilot, took off from Sirsi for Kedarnath Dham. Due to a technical snag in the helicopter, the chopper had to make an emergency landing some distance from the Kedarnath helipad".
Gaharwar confirms that all the boarded passengers were safe. “The pilot did not lose his patience and showed wisdom and made an emergency landing of the helicopter,” he added. He further added that the reason for the technical fault in the helicopter is being investigated. The video, going viral on the internet, shows the chopper spinning out of control as it attempts to land near the helipad.
Accidents in Kedarnath: Previous cases
In April 2023, a senior official of the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) died after being hit by the tail rotor of a helicopter in Kedarnath.
In October 2022, a chopper crashed in Kedarnath, killing six devotees and the pilot. After the accident, the UCADA had kept in touch with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to set up an air traffic control system in Kedarnath to monitor the activity of heli services nearby.