The Mi-17 V5 chopper was on an "air maintenance mission" when it crashed (File Photo)
Seven military personnel were killed when an Indian
Air Force helicopter crashed at Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh this morning.
The Mi-17 V5 chopper was on an "air maintenance mission" when it crashed around 6 am, according to the Air Force.
Here are the highlights the Indian Air Force chopper crash:
Those who died were Wing Commander B Upadhyay, Squadron Leader S Tiwari, Master Warrant Officer AK Singh and Sergeants Gautam and Satish Kumar and army soldiers HN Deka and E Balaji.
Charred bodies of seven including the pilot and co-pilot were found
The charred bodies of seven, including the pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and two army officers, were found at the crash site close to the border with China.
The helicopter was carrying supplies to a forward post of the Indian Army.
According to sources, the pilot and co-pilot were senior officers - one was a wing commander and the other, a squadron leader.
The bodies of the 7 casualties were found at Yangchi, 130 km from Tawang town close to the border with China.
The seven military personnel who were killed include five IAF crew members and 2 Indian Army personnel. The pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer were among those killed.
The number dead in the chopper crash has increased to seven.
According to sources, rescue teams reached the crash site within two hours of the accident and brought the injured person to a local hospital in Tawang.
At least one person from the Army was on board the chopper and two IAF pilots were believed to be among those killed in the crash, official sources said.
Pema Khandu, the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh took to Twitter to offer his condolence to the family of the air force personnel killed in the crash.
Read about the details of the crash
here.
A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to establish what caused the chopper to crash.