A tragic helicopter crash in Pune’s Bavdhan area claimed the lives of three people on Wednesday morning, including two pilots and an engineer. The incident occurred around 6:45 am when the helicopter, which had taken off from a helipad at a nearby golf course, crashed in a hilly region and caught fire.
The victims of the crash have been identified as pilots Paramjit Singh and G K Pillai, and engineer Pritam Bharadwaj.
Chief Fire Officer Devendra Prabhakar Potphode described the scene, saying, “Upon reaching the crash site, we saw the helicopter in pieces, with a fire still smoldering. We managed to recover the bodies and handed them over to the police. Further details are yet to be confirmed.”
#WATCH | Maharashtra: Visuals from the spot in Pune where a private chopper crashed soon after it took off, claiming 3 lives. Police and Fire Department teams are present at the spot.
DCP Pimpri-Chinchwad says that a private helicopter of Heritage Aviation took off from… pic.twitter.com/U5QFJUOmjB
— ANI (@ANI) October 2, 2024
Initial reports indicate that the helicopter, registered under the number VT EVV, belonged to Heritage Aviation and was stationed in Pune. It had been chartered by the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and was en route to Mumbai. NCP chief Sunil Tatkare mentioned that he had planned to visit Raigad using the helicopter.
Local police and fire department teams quickly arrived at the crash site to manage the situation. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
