Mortal remains, material evidence to be picked up by helicopters and brought back to Jorhat: IAF

Shillong based Defence PRO Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said that the weather continues to be marginal and is likely to affect the pace of recovery operations.

“IAF mountaineers, Army Special Forces personnel and local mountaineers were dropped off at the closest possible location to the crash site and have reached the crash site. The mortal remains and other material evidence have to be picked up by helicopters and brought back to Jorhat in stages. The recovery team is braving the treacherous terrain and inclement weather in order to bring back the mortal remains as soon as possible,” Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said.

Three more civil mountaineers were inducted into the rescue mission. Earlier, 15 mountaineers from Army, IAF and civil were inducted for the mission

The IAF has flown around 200 sorties towards the AN-32 search and recovery operations and is sparing no efforts in recovering the remains of its personnel for which 8 helicopters have been deployed.

The next of kins of all personnel on board have been informed of the crash and the subsequent search operations undertaken by the IAF.

Concerned family members have been apprised of the progress of the recovery operations as well and IAF officials are in regular touch with them.

The IAF and all its personnel stand with the families in this hour of grief.

On Tuesday, the wreckage of the missing AN-32 was spotted in the dense forest area about16 km north of Lipo and about 12-15 km west of Gatte under Payum region of Arunachal Pradesh’s Shi Yomi district.

13 passengers including eight crew members were onboard the IAF’s AN-32 when it went missing on June 3 after it taking off from Assam’s Jorhat airbase for the Mechuka Advance Landing Ground in Arunachal Pradesh.