Uttarakhand makes two pilots mandatory on Char Dham helicopter charters after a crash near Joshimath killed six
The new rules also require a report after every flight and prior clearance for each take-off and landing.
- The Hindu
- The Indian Express
The Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) on Saturday made a co-pilot mandatory on helicopters flying pilgrimage routes, The Hindu reported. The decision came a day after a helicopter returning from Śrī Badrinath Dham crashed near Hathi Parvat in Joshimath tehsil, Chamoli district.
All six people on board, the pilot and five passengers from Karnataka, were killed, The Indian Express reported. The helicopter was flying towards the Sahastradhara helipad in Dehradun when it went down at around 2 pm on Friday.
The State grounded the entire fleet of the operator, Trans Bharat Aviation, as a precaution. The district administration's report said the aircraft met adverse weather in the Hathi Parvat area, and the exact cause is under investigation.
UCADA chief executive Prateek Jain said all Char Dham charter services would run with a two-pilot crew from 2 November. Pilots must now file a report after every flight on weather and other operating conditions, to help crews on later flights.
Prior approval from UCADA's Helicopter Operations Officer will be needed for every take-off and landing. According to sources quoted by The Hindu, the two-pilot rule will not apply to Kedarnath shuttle services.
Teams from the DGCA and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau reached Joshimath on Saturday to begin their inquiry. Army, ITBP, NDRF and SDRF teams trekked to the remote site to recover the bodies, IE reported.
Key data
6 killed (1 pilot, 5 passengers); crash at about 2 pm on 30 Oct 2026; two-pilot crew mandatory from 2 Nov 2026; IMD orange alert for Chamoli on 30 Oct.
Why it matters
Helicopters carry thousands of elderly and time-pressed yātrīs to the Himalayan dhāmas each season, so these rules bear directly on pilgrim safety. Families of the six are in our prayers.
GK: did you know?
Badrinath, on the Alaknanda in Chamoli district, is one of the four dhāmas traditionally associated with Ādi Śaṅkarācārya and is also one of the 108 Divya Deśams of Śrī Viṣṇu.
