Badal’s helicopter makes emergency landing in Punjab

CHANDIGARH - A helicopter, carrying Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, was forced to make an emergency landing in Punjab’s Ferozepur district on Sunday after developing a suspected technical snag.

Chief Minister’s media advisor Harcharan Bains said the helicopter, Bell 230, was chartered by Punjab Government, and that pilots experienced some difficulty just before the scheduled landing in Jalalabad.

“Preliminary reports pointed towards a technical fault in the cyclical control of the helicopter. The pilots ejected some of the fuel of the chopper before steering the helicopter to an unscheduled landing site,” Bains said.

The Government further has referred the incident to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for an inquiry and would make a statement on the causes of the emergency landing only after the DGCA submits its report. (ANI)