At lease three people, reportedly, were killed as an ONGC Helicopter crashed this morning in Mumbai. The Pawan Hans chopper had 7 people on board, with 5 officials and 2 crew members.
According to reports, debris has been found 22 miles off the coast.
The Dauphin chopper, VT PWA, had lost contact with Air Traffic Control (ATC) 30 nautical miles off Mumbai. It had taken off from Juhu heliport at 10.20 a.m. for off shore rig operations. The helicopter went missing at 10.35 am. It suddenly lost contact with both the Mumbai ATC and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
At that time, it was thought to be flying around 55 km off the Mumbai shoreline, presumably en route to the ONGC’s Bombay High oilfields, around 175 km northwest from here.
The Indian Coast Guard has diverted a ship and an aircraft to the region for rescue operation, said an official spokesperson.
(With IANS reports)