Team of 15 mountaineers to help in AN-32 recovery operation

GUWAHATI: A day after the wreckage of the missing AN-32 aircraft was spotted, 15 IAF, Army and civilian mountaineers were on Wednesday inducted by Mi-17s and Advanced Light Helicopters with all equipment for the final approach to the crash site.
They were stopped in their tracks, however, by bad weather.
Defence PRO Lt Col P Khongsai said, "The induction of the 15 mountaineers from helicopters is complete.They are yet to reach the crash site due to inclement weather and terrain. The team will be camping overnight due to difficult terrain and weather and will close in to the crash site tomorrow (Thursday)."
Nine mountaineers are from IAF, four from Army and two civilian mountaineers, who will be looking for possible survivors and the black box and cockpit voice recorder of the transport aircraft.
The wreckage of the aircraft was spotted 16 km north of Lipo, northeast of Tato, at an approximate elevation of 12,000 ft by the IAF's Mi-17 helicopter in a heavily forested mountainous terrain in Siang district on Tuesday, eight days after it went missing while on way from Jorhat AIF base to Mechuka advanced landing ground in Shi Yomi district of Arunachal Pradesh, which is about 25 km from the McMahon Line. There were eight aircrew and five passengers on board the aircraft.
Soon after the wreckage was sighted on Tuesday morning, the search operation was called off. No exercise could be undertaken on Tuesday to reach the crash site after the sighting of the wreckage.
Incidentally, locals had reportedly seen smoke billowing out and also heard the sound of an explosion over the area on June 3, the day the aircraft went missing. But there were no sightings to confirm the inputs from locals.
Air officer-commanding-in-chief Eastern Air Command, Air marshal RD Mathur has complimented the search team for their relentless effort spanning eight days. He also thanked Arunachal chief minister Pema Khandu and chief secretary Satya Gopal for extending unflinching support to the IAF towards locating the missing AN-32.