ONGC helicopter crashes in Arabian Sea with 9 on board, 4 dead

An ONGC helicopter carrying nine people, including two pilots, plunged into the water off the coast of Mumbai while attempting to land on a company's rig in the Arabian Sea. The helicopter in question was carrying 9 people including 3 ONGC employees. Based on PTI's report 4 of the people on-board have died in the incident. The Indian Navy and the Coast Guard joined the rescue effort. For the rescue of the ONGC helicopter's passengers and crew, which was 60 nautical miles from Mumbai, the Navy sent out the Seaking and ALH helicopters as well as the Indian Naval Ship Teg.  

The Coast Guard also diverted a ship to reach the spot, while another ship sailed out from Mumbai with dispatch to join the rescue operations. The Coast Guard aircraft also dropped life rafts for survivors, and the international safety net was activated by the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre (Mumbai), the defense official said.

The ONGC chopper was attempting to land at the rig, located some 50 nautical miles from the Mumbai coast when the incident took place. About 1.5 km from the landing zone on the rig, the chopper fell into the sea, a company official said.

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The circumstances that led to the incident were not immediately clear. Other details, too, were awaited, he said. The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has several rigs and installations in the Arabian Sea that produce oil and gas from reservoirs below the seabed.

With inputs from PTI