Helicopter Carrying Six From Badrinath to Dehradun Crashes in Uttarakhand, All Six Killed

A helicopter carrying six people from Badrinath to Dehradun crashed in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district on Friday afternoon, killing all six occupants after rescue teams located the wreckage near Joshimath.

The helicopter, operated by private aviation company Trans Bharat Aviation, went down near Chai village, close to Hathi Parvat and the JP Power House, at around 2:20 pm. It had one pilot and five passengers on board. The aircraft was reportedly flying from Badrinath to Dehradun when it crashed into a hillside.

The victims have been identified as pilot Captain Himanshu and five passengers — Prathapa, Arun, Shankar Gowda, Sudheer K and H.S. Natraja. All six people on board lost their lives in the crash.

According to reports, the helicopter took off from Badrinath at approximately 1:14 pm. It subsequently lost communication while flying over the Joshimath valley, with its tracking signal also reportedly disappearing.

Rescue teams from the district administration, police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) were mobilised to locate the aircraft and reach the crash site. Medical teams were also put on alert.

Adverse weather conditions have emerged as a possible factor in the accident. The India Meteorological Department had issued an orange alert for Chamoli, warning of thunderstorms, lightning, hail and gusty winds. Rainfall, snowfall and poor visibility were also reported in the region. However, the exact cause of the crash has not been established.

The crashed helicopter was reportedly a Bell 407, a single-engine aircraft manufactured by US-based Bell Textron and widely used for commercial passenger transport, emergency services and utility operations. Trans Bharat Aviation operates a fleet of three Bell 407 helicopters, each capable of carrying up to six passengers. The company’s entire fleet was reportedly grounded as a precaution following Friday’s crash.

The accident has once again drawn attention to aviation safety in Uttarakhand’s mountainous terrain, where helicopters are frequently used to transport pilgrims and visitors to remote religious destinations.