[Watch] Coast Guard Helicopter Crashes Near Kochi Airport; 2 Hospitalised

Kochi: A helicopter of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) crashed during take-off at the Nedumbassery airport here on Sunday afternoon.

Of the three Coast Guard personnel in the chopper, two suffered injuries and had to be hospitalised for treatment.

Watch the video clip shared on Twitter:

An Indian coast guard ALH MK3MR helicopter crashed at Nedumbassery airport, Kochi early today. The helicopter with three men preparing for a training flight when skidded off its course and crashed. The runway was closed at CIAL airport. #Kerala #ALHDhruv pic.twitter.com/PR6M7ZZKdG

— Ashish (@KP_Aashish) March 26, 2023

Operations were suspended for a couple of hours at Cochin International Airport for some time, and a few flights had to be diverted to nearby airports.

The incident took place around 12.30 pm during a training flight when the chopper crashed immediately after take-off. The impact of the crash was not as severe as it could have been, officials said.

ICG officials said it was a case of ‘forced landing’ when the ALH Dhruv Mark 3 helicopter was at a height of around 30-40 feet.

The fleet of ALH Dhruv choppers has been grounded since March 8 after a Navy copter met with an accident off the Mumbai coast.

The ICG has ordered an inquiry to identify the cause of the accident.