Captain Himanshu Sabharwal, pilot behind flowers shower on Guru Ram Das Ji's Parkash Purab, dies in Uttarakhand crash
PTC News Desk: Life is inherently unpredictable and how tragically sometimes it can unfold is dreadful.
Captain Himanshu Sabharwal, the pilot known for showering of flower petals over Amritsar on the occasion of Guru Ram Das Ji's Parkash Purab, was killed in a helicopter crash in Uttarakhand's Badrinath on Friday.
According to reports, Captain Sabharwal, 48, was among six people killed when a Trans Bharat Aviation helicopter crashed near Chai village in Joshimath, Chamoli district, on Friday, October 30. The helicopter was travelling from Badrinath to Sahastradhara in Dehradun with five passengers on board. All six occupants died.
The pilot, Captain Himanshu Sabharwal, was among the six people killed in the tragic aviation accident. He is widely remembered for flying the helicopter, which showered flowers over Amritsar on Gurpurab.
The helicopter lost contact around two minutes after taking off from Badrinath. Rescue teams later found the wreckage near Chai village. The five passengers were from Karnataka.
Also Read: Badrinath helicopter crash: All six onboard dead in Chamoli, Trans Bharat Aviation fleet grounded
In a special interview with PTC News, the pilot became emotional as he spoke about the service. He had expressed a wish to shower flowers over Sri Harmandir Sahib twice a year and said he felt fortunate to have been given the opportunity.
The exact cause of the crash has not yet been established. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has sent a team to assess the accident, and the operator’s helicopter fleet has been grounded as a precaution.
Officials have not established what caused the crash. The region has seen heavy rain and cloud cover, with snowfall in some places. However, Prateek Jain, CEO of the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA), said the helicopter was cleared to fly only after weather conditions were found to be favourable.
As a precaution, the entire fleet of Trans Bharat Aviation has been grounded.
Who was Captain Himanshu Sabharwal ?
Captain Himanshu Sabharwal, 48, was a pilot with Trans Bharat Aviation and was flying helicopter VT-HCX. The helicopter lost contact with air traffic control about two minutes after taking off from Badrinath for the Sahasradhara helipad in Dehradun.
It crashed near Chai village and Hathi Parvat, close to Joshimath. Local residents said they saw the helicopter rapidly descend towards the valley.
All six people on board died.
Captain Himanshu Sabharwal was a resident of Delhi. A neighbour described him as a lively and warm person, and said people in his neighbourhood often called him “Colonel” because of his military background.
- PTC NEWS
