Two senior officials of helicopter firm booked in Kedarnath chopper crash

Two senior officials of helicopter service operating firm Aryan Aviation Pvt Ltd have been booked for alleged negligence leading to the chopper crash near Kedarnath that killed all seven on board, including a two-year-old and the pilot.

The Bell 407 helicopter that crashed on Sunday owing to bad weather in the forests of Gauri Mai Khark between Gaurikund and Triyuginarayan belonged to Aryan Aviation.

A case has been registered against Aryan Aviation's accounts manager Kaushik Pathak and manager Vikas Tomar at Sonprayag police station under section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and section 10 of the Aircraft Act 1934, which deals with penalties for violating rules made under the Act, particularly those related to the carriage of dangerous goods or providing false information about them, police said.

The case was registered on the basis of a complaint lodged by Revenue Police sub-inspector Rajiv Nakholia posted at Phata, a small town located near the Himalayan temple.

The complaint states that Aryan Aviation was allotted the first slot from 6.00 am to 7.00 am for helicopter operations on 15 June, while the accident happened before that, at 5.30 am.

In addition, despite the sky being cloudy and foggy since morning, the weather conditions were not checked before the helicopter took off.

The complaint states that the standard operating procedure (SOP) issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) was ignored while the company managers knew very well that doing so could cause loss of life and property.

The complaint said by doing so, Aryan Aviation Pvt Ltd and its managers showed gross negligence towards their responsibilities, owing to which the crash occurred.