A helicopter carrying India’s Chief of Defence General Bipin Rawat crashed on Wednesday, the air force said, with rescuers at the scene saying at least five people were dead.
Rawat is India’s first chief of defence staff, a position that the government established in 2019, and is seen as close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The 63-year-old was travelling in a Russian-made Mi-17 chopper that met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu, the Indian Air Force said on Twitter.
Rawat and his wife were on board along with other officers and were headed to the Defence Services Staff College, reports AFP citing a senior army officer.
Videos broadcast on Indian news channels showed a fiery wreck at the crash site in a dense forested area near the college in the Nilgiris district.
Media reports said the chopper took off from Sulur Air Force Station on Wednesday afternoon.
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