What: Pawan Hans Helicopters Eurocopter AS 350B3 Ecureuil en route from Tawang to Itanagar
Where: Luguthang, India
When: April 30, 2011
Who: 5 fatalities, including Dorjee Khandu
Why: The helicoptor taking Dorjee Khandu from a retreat disappeared en route. Two MI-17 and two Cheetah helicopters were engaged in the search.
The helicopter wreckage was found 5 days after it went missing. Dorjee Khandu, Mr Khandu’s security officer Yeshi Choddak, Yeshi Lamu, and crew members JS Babbar and KS Malick all died in the crash. The wreckage was at 4900 meters, near Jung Falls in the Tawang district. The search was hampered by bad weather.
The chopper that crashed was 4 months old, according to Chief Minister Khandu’s adviser Kiren Rijiju. However, the maintenance department of Pawan Hans has a bad reputation.