A Coast Guard helicopter met with an accident on Sunday just after taking off near the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL). According to news agency ANI, the ALH Dhruv Mark 3 helicopter sustained damage to its rotors and airframe. The Cochin International Airport authority informed that the airport operations have been temporarily suspended after the incident.
"The incident happened while the helicopter was taking off for a training sortie. No casualties were reported", said the officials.
Meanwhile, the Indian Coast Guard has ordered an inquiry to investigate the cause of the accident.
The airport officials informed that the ALH was removed from the operational area around 2 pm and the runway has been cleared substantially after a safety inspection. Flight operation is expected to be resumed soon.
According to the officials, the incident happened at around 12.20 pm."As a Coast Guard ALH helicopter was involved in an accident while taking off from CIAL at 1225 pm today, airport operation had to be suspended temporarily for 2 hrs", said the officials.
The chopper was at around 25 feet in height when it had to make a forced landing, as informed by the ICG officials. The fleet of ALH Dhruv choppers has been grounded since March 8 after a Navy chopper met with an accident off the coast of Mumbai.
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