Helicopter sorties were allowed despite orange alert and CMO advice to regulate tourists, says activist

Wreckage of a private helicopter operated by Trans Bharat Aviation lying on a hillside near Chai village in the Joshimath area of Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, on Friday, October 30, 2026. File | Photo Credit: PTI

Friday’s (October 30, 2026) helicopter crash on the Badrinath-Dehradun route, which killed six people, including the pilot, has brought Uttarakhand’s helicopter safety regulations under fresh scrutiny, particularly the decision to allow flights despite weather warnings issued for the region.

Activist Anoop Nautiyal said the tragedy was particularly disturbing as weather warnings had been issued in advance. An orange alert (for heavy to very heavy rainfall and snowfall) had been issued for five districts, including Chamoli, for October 30.

“A press release issued at 5.44 p.m. on October 29, following a meeting chaired by Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman, had called for heightened vigilance and directed that passengers be moved to safe locations in the event of deteriorating weather,” Mr. Nautiyal said.

He said the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) had also reiterated these concerns in a communication issued at 8.01 a.m. on October 30, advising authorities to regulate tourist movement in high-altitude areas in view of the orange alert.

“Despite these warnings, helicopter sorties reportedly continued. This raises questions about who authorised the flights, whether the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) enforced the necessary restrictions and why commercial operations were allowed to continue under potentially unsafe conditions,” he said.

Series of accidents

The latest crash comes after a series of helicopter accidents during the 2025 Char Dham Yatra. A crash between Kharsali and Jhala on May 8, 2025 killed six people, while an Aryan Aviation helicopter crashed near Gaurikund on June 15, 2025 killing seven. Five helicopter incidents were reported within just 45 days.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau’s (AAIB) probe into the last year’s June crash cited rapidly descending clouds, loss of visual reference, the decision to continue along the route and the pilot’s limited experience in the Kedarnath valley as contributing factors.

In July 2025, the Ministry of Civil Aviation told Parliament that Uttarakhand accounted for more than half of the 12 helicopter accidents reported nationwide since 2020, as well as 21 of the 30 deaths.

Responding to Mr. Nautiyal’s allegations that weather warnings had been ignored, Prateek Jain, the Chief Executive Officer of UCADA, said the agency was following all prescribed safety norms.

“At the time the helicopter crashed, the weather was clear. Two sorties took off before it and two after it, and all of them landed safely,” he said, adding that a detailed investigation into the cause of the accident was under way.

Naveen Singh, a pilgrim from Madhya Pradesh who undertook the Kedarnath Yatra by helicopter this year, questioned whether the corrective measures announced after last year’s accidents had been effectively implemented. “The helicopter I travelled in flew in cloudy weather, but we landed safely,” he said.

High-altitude challenges

Flight operators in Uttarakhand said flying in the Himalayas posed particular operational challenges. Thin air at high altitudes reduces rotor lift and engine power, leaving pilots with less margin for hovering, climbing and carrying passengers.

Despite the risks, helicopter services remain a lucrative part of the pilgrimage economy. More than a dozen companies deploy around 30 single-engine helicopters each season, generating an estimated ₹800 crore annually.

A veteran Kedarnath shuttle pilot, however, said the business was neither as easy nor as profitable as it appeared. He pointed to the absence of radar coverage, dedicated air traffic control, and real-time weather monitoring as major challenges. “Fast-changing mountain weather and the scarcity of emergency landing sites also put passengers and pilots at considerable risk,” he said.

Published - October 30, 2026 10:27 pm IST