BSF chopper crashes in Raipur, five injured

Raipur, Jan 15 (IANS) Five occupants of a Border Security Force (BSF) helicopter were injured when it crashed at Raipur airport Sunday while on a test flight, police and airport officials said.

"The helicopter crashed from a height of about 100 feet when it took off for a test flight. Five people -- the pilot, co-pilot, one engineer and two technicians -- who were on the board sustained injuries," Mana airport in-charge Anil Roy told reporters.

The chopper was believed to be an indegenously-built Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH) but there was no independent confirmation of this.

State police chief Anil M. Navaney, who rushed to the spot along with other officials, said that all the five injured were taken to a private hospital where a doctor said they were out of danger.

Sources said that BSF had launched a probe into the incident in which local police and airport officials were assisting.

The crash blocked the runway and flights to New Delhi and Mumbai by private carriers were delayed for hours. Officials were hard at work to restore normalcy at the airport, from where 32 flights operate daily.