Mumbai: A helicopter pilot was killed and three others were injured, one critically, after the copter their were flying in crashed at the Filter Pada area of Aarey Colony, Goregaon around noon on Sunday.
Four persons, including a two-man crew comprising pilot Praful Kumar Mishra (55) and an engineer, all occupants of the chopper, suffered burns and were rushed to a hospital where Mishra, succumbed to injuries.
Sources from the Juhu aerodrome said the aircraft took off from Juhu at 11.52 am, and the pilot informed Juhu Air Traffic Control about a technical snag at 11.56 am. Within 10 seconds of the pilot’s SOS, the aircraft crashed. The aircraft had circled Film City once and was in the process of circling it again when the mishap took place. .
The pilot was identified as Praful Kumar Mishra (55). The injured were identified as engineer Sanjiv Shankar (22) and Borivali–based couple Ritesh Modi (36) and Vrinda Modi (32). While Mr Shankar suffered fractures, the Modis suffered 50 per cent burns. Ritesh Modi remains critical.
Aman Aviation runs the copter. It charges Rs 3,200 for a 10-minute flight, Rs 5,250 for 15 minutes and Rs 6,500 for 20 minutes.
After seeing the crash, locals rushed to the site and tried to cut seat-belts using a sickle. During the rescue, Mishra, the pilot, got stuck in the blades of the chopper. However, the locals managed to pull him out and take him to a hospital, where he was declared brought dead.
