Bipin Rawat: Inquiry report reveals cause of chopper crash that killed Indian CDS

NEW DEHLI: An Indian parliamentary committee inquiry report revealed that the helicopter crash that killed India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, was caused by pilot error.

The Mi-17 carrying General Bipin Rawat, his wife and 12 armed forces personnel crashed on December 8, 2021, leaving all the persons dead on board.

According to Indian media reports, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence has submitted a detailed report to the Lok Sabha, stating that the incident was the result of human error by aircrew.

The Mi-17 crash occurred due to spatial disorientation of the pilot amid bad weather conditions, the report said.

Spatial disorientation is the inability of a person to determine his true body position, motion, and altitude relative to the earth or his surroundings.

The inquiry team meticulously analysed the flight data recorder, cockpit voice recorder, and witness testimonies to reach this conclusion.

The report noted that the helicopter’s entry into clouds due to an unexpected change in weather conditions in the valley, led to spatial disorientation of the pilot, resulting in a Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT).”

The Inquiry Committee also highlighted the vast history of Indian force’s aircraft crashes, saying that nine accidents were recorded during 2021-2022 while 34 accidents were reported during 2017-22.

Earlier in 2022, an official inquiry also said that the pilot disoriented by a sudden change in weather conditions crashed the helicopter carrying India’s defence chief General Bipin Rawat.

Rawat was India’s first chief of defence staff, a position that the government established in 2019, and was seen as close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Rawat was an outspoken and polarising but hugely popular officer who came from a military family and had already survived a helicopter accident in 2015, with minor injuries.