Seven people have died in a helicopter crash in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand, officials have said. According to local media reports, the aircraft was flying from Kedarnath along a popular Hindu pilgrimage route in the Himalayan mountains. It is understood that rescue teams were immediately dispatched and an operation to retrieve the bodies has been carried out with local police. The pilot and a two-year-old child were among those killed, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said.
India's Ministry of Civil Aviation said the Aryan Aviation Bell 407 helicopter VT-BKA, took off yesterday early in the morning. Five passengers, one child and one crew member were on board the flight bound for Guptkashi - another popular town for pilgrims. It was then discovered that the helicopter had crashed near Gaurikund.
A meeting between senior officials in the wake of the crash ordered helicopter services for the route be completely closed until today. This comes as the London-bound Air India aircraft, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed soon after taking off on Thursday last week. At least 270 people have been killed, most of them passengers and more than 30 on the ground.
