State Govt Terminates Chief Pilot Three Years After Chhattisgarh Govt Helicopter Crash That Killed Two Pilots
Raipur
Three years after the tragic crash of a state-owned Agusta A109E helicopter at Raipur’s Mana Airport, the Chhattisgarh government has finally taken major action. The services of Pankaj Jaiswal, the then Chief Pilot and Chief Technical Advisor in the state aviation department, have been terminated, according to sources.
The incident occurred on May 12, 2022, when the helicopter crashed during landing, killing senior pilots Captain A.P. Srivastava and Captain Gopal Krishna Panda. According to the report by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the crash was a result of gross negligence in the maintenance of the aircraft.
Captain Panda, who hailed from Odisha, and Captain Srivastava, a resident of Delhi, both died on the spot, sustaining severe injuries and multiple fractures.
The DGCA report revealed that the maintenance of the helicopter stationed at Mana Airport was extremely poor. Several critical components were not replaced on time, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) for aircraft upkeep were not followed. The tail rotor, a vital part located at the rear of the helicopter, was found to be faulty, yet it wasn’t repaired.
Despite the seriousness of the crash, no action was taken for years. Pankaj Jaiswal, held responsible in the DGCA report, was not only retained but also appointed as the Chief Technical Advisor on contract, drawing a salary of over ₹3 lakh per month. Ironically, since the crash, the state has had no functioning helicopter.
On the night of May 12, 2022, at 9:10 PM, the Agusta A109E helicopter crashed while landing at Mana Airport. During the landing, the helicopter flipped three times on the runway. The DGCA’s investigation concluded that the accident was caused by serious lapses and failures.
The report mentioned that the safety culture at the airport was lacking. There was no towing arm—a tractor-like vehicle used to pull aircraft in emergencies. As a result, the pilot did not shut off the engine immediately after landing and instead tried to taxi the helicopter manually toward the runway, causing it to flip.
If a towing arm had been available, the engine could have been turned off post-landing, and the aircraft could have been safely towed, preventing the tragedy.
The report also highlighted that expired parts were not replaced, in clear violation of aviation safety norms. Each helicopter part comes with a usage deadline set by the manufacturer, and exceeding that limit requires a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the company. In Chhattisgarh, however, there was no system in place to verify compliance with SOPs.
The fatal flight was a formal test for senior pilot GK Panda, with a senior pilot flown in from Delhi to oversee it. After a successful landing, the helicopter began moving toward the runway when the tail rotor failed, causing the helicopter to overturn three times.
The DGCA report further noted a lack of coordination between the pilot and co-pilot. The engine should have been shut down immediately after landing, but the attempt to taxi on the runway instead led to the fatal crash.
The inaction following the deaths of two experienced pilots drew criticism. Despite the DGCA’s report holding Chief Pilot Jaiswal responsible, the previous Bhupesh Baghel-led government failed to initiate a thorough investigation or disciplinary proceedings. The recent move to terminate Jaiswal’s contract comes after prolonged public and departmental scrutiny.
