Chopper crash: Lone survivor Group Captain Varun Singh on life support; being shifted to Bengaluru

New Delhi, Dec 09: Group Captain Varun Singh, the lone survivor of the chopper crash incident in Tamil Nadu, is currently on the life support system at a hospital in Wellington, Defence Minister Rjnath Singh said in the Lok Sabha. He said that all efforts are being made to save him.

Group Captain Varun Singh was in IAF's Mi-17 chopper along with CDS General Bipin Rawat and others when it crashed. Reports say that Group Captain Varun Singh suffered more than 60 per cent burn injuries in the mishap.

According to news agency ANI, Group Captain Varun Singh's health condition is critical but stable. He is under watch and if required, he can be shifted from the Military Hospital, Wellington to the Command Hospital, Bangalore.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said that a tri-service inquiry will be conducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter crash the previous day that resulted in the death of the country's first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika, and 11 other personnel of the armed forces.

The inquiry team led by led by Air Marshal Manavendra Singh reached Wellington yesterday, Singh said in Lok Sabha.

Meanwhile, Defence officials retrieved the Flight Data Recorder, more popularly known as 'Black Box', of the ill-fated Indian Air Force helicopter that crashed near here on Wednesday, killing Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat and 12 others.

Official sources said the black box was retrieved in the wake of authorities expanding the search area from 300 metres to one km from the accident spot.

Rawat was on his way to the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC), Wellington to address the faculty and student officers of the staff course when the fatal mishap happened in the Katteri-Nanchappanchathram area. IAF chief, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari visited the site of the helicopter crash on Thursday and along with senior officials, inspected the area, official sources said.