Abu Dhabi: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has offered its condolences for the families of those killed in a chopper crash in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation expressed its profound condolences and sympathy to the Indian government and to the families and relatives of the victims.
The chopper crashed when Indian Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 12 other Army officers were going to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington in a chopper in Coonoor district to give a lecture scheduled at about 3 pm on December 8.
The Russian-made Mi-17 chopper, for an unknown reason, crashed near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu while it was preparing to land.
The sole survivor of the crash, a captain working at the DSSC, is being treated for his injuries at a nearby military hospital, the air force said.
About Indian Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat
General Bipin Rawat is the first Chief of Staff in India after the Indian government created this position in 2019. He comes from a military family that served several generations in the Indian Armed Forces and joined the army with the rank of second lieutenant in 1978.