Army chopper forced to crash land in Udhampur, both pilots succumb to injuries

An Indian Army helicopter with two personnel on board was forced to crash land at Shiv Garh Dhar in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir. While both the pilot and co-pilot were evacuated to a hospital, they later succumbed to their injuries.

The police have said that excessive fog in the area had reduced visibility, which may have led to the accident.

In a statement, the Indian Army said, "Today during a training sortie in Patnitop area, an Indian Army Cheetah Helicopter crash-landed in Shiv Garh Dhar area in Udhampur district. Two pilots have been injured and evacuated to the hospital."

However, in a later update, it was said that both the personnel have passed away.

DIG Udhampur Suleman Chowdhry had said that the police received information and dispatched teams towards the spot in Shiv Garh Dhar. He added that due to the presence of excess fog in the area, visibility was low.

Rescue teams later managed to reach the spot while locals helped bring out the two injured Army personnel.

On August 3, another helicopter of the Indian Army crashed into the Ranjit Sagar Dam lake in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua, prompting authorities to launch a massive search operation.