Army copter crashes, 3 killed

Ironically, a full-fledged Rs 1.87-crore Cheetah helicopter simulator was set up at the training school at Nashik just 10 months ago with the precise purpose of reducing the risks and cost of training rookie pilots, though the two pilots killed today were both training as flying instructors and had already clocked 450 flying hours each.

Today8217;s crash comes a day after a young IAF pilot bailed out of his MiG-29 fighter near Ambala. Bad luck in the circumstances sources said, since one of his engines shut down from a technical failure, and the other flamed out from a bird-hit when he was making an emergency return to base, forcing him to eject. Without the bird-hit, he could have landed.

The Army8217;s 120-odd Cheetah helicopters, the lightest and most agile choppers in its inventory, are currently used principally in the reconnaissance and observation R038;O role, and are deployed in strength across all high-altitude stations, including Leh, where both the IAF and Army operate Cheetah flights to Siachen and Eastern Ladakh.

HAL, manufacturers of the Cheetah, introduced an upgraded version designated Cheetal in 2004, though the Army was not too impressed, claiming that the programme was not an effective upgrade if the chopper8217;s transmission systems were not overhauled.