Shooting-Down Own Mi-17 Chopper A Big Mistake – Indian Air Force Chief

Indian Air Force Chief has admitted that the Mi-17 chopper crash on February 27 was a “big mistake” on part of the air force. The Mi-17 crash killed six IAF personnel on board.

A file photo of the Mi-17 chopper that was crashed in an open field near Garend Kalaan village in Budgam (SCREENGRAB)

Speaking to the media on Friday, Air Chief Marshal chief Rakesh Kumar Bhadauria said, “Court of Inquiry has completed and it was our mistake as our missile had hit our own chopper. We will take action against the two officers. We accept this was our big mistake and we will ensure such mistakes are not repeated in the future.”

The Indian Air Force lost six personnel when their chopper was hit by its own SPYDER air defence missile over Budgam.

Court of Inquiry has completed and it was our mistake as our missile had hit our own chopper. We will take action against the two officers. We accept this was our big mistake and we will ensure such mistakes are not repeated in the future,” Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria told the media.

Pakistan has often accused New Delhi of baseless narrative (for downing a Pakistani F-16 Jet) rigged with baseless claims. IAF claimed that its jets had hit a supposed training camp of Jaish-e-Mohammad militant group in Balakot area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, killing hundreds of terrorists – including some senior commanders.

However, Pakistan rejected the claims and even took foreign media on a tour to the site (much later) where Indian jets had dropped their payloads. There was no camp, neither were there any casualties, Islamabad maintains.