Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Minister of State for Home Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo and NC’s provincial president and former Political Advisor to Chief Minister Devender Rana had a narrow escape when the State helicopter carrying them from Kishtwar to Srinagar had to make an emergency landing within couple of minutes of the take off at Kishtwar this afternoon.
No one was injured, official sources said, adding that a high level team of the Civil Aviation Department would look into the technical snag that cropped up in the State helicopter used by the VVIPs.
Omar and Mr Kichloo later left for Srinagar by road while Mr Rana returned to Jammu, also by road.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the State helicopter carrying Mr Abdullah, Mr Rana and Mr Kichloo, a Personal Security Officer of the CM and two pilots took off from Kishtwar airstrip at about 3.50 pm for Srinagar. Within couple of minutes of the take off, the pilot noticed technical snag in the helicopter.
The pilot managed to land the helicopter back at Kishtwar airstrip safely.
An alert was immediately sounded in Kishtwar and senior officers of police and civil administration, who were returning after seeing off the Chief Minister, rushed back.
Sources said the helicopter landed safely at the airstrip and all the occupants came out unharmed.
“No one was injured in the emergency landing. There was also no damage to the helicopter but it had developed technical snag,” sources said.
The Civil Aviation Department would hold an inquiry into technical snag in the State helicopter, which is mostly used by the Chief Minister and other VVIPs. The helicopter was stationed at Kishtwar airstrip.
A Civil Aviation team was expected to visit Kishtwar tomorrow to ascertain reasons behind the technical snag, rectify them and bring back the State helicopter to Jammu, the winter capital of the State.
The district administration later arranged vehicles and security and the Chief Minister along with the Minister of State for Home drove to Srinagar by road at about 4.30 pm. They reached Srinagar tonight after brief halt at Chanderkoot where security convoys were changed.
Mr Rana drove to Jammu and reached here late in the night.
While Mr Kichloo was already camping in Kishtwar to oversee arrangements for today’s public rally of Omar, the NC provincial president Devender Rana had flown to Kishtwar this morning along with Omar in the same helicopter.
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