Six killed, 10 injured in North Waziristan chopper crash

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NORTH WAZIRISTAN: A chartered helicopter belonging to Mari Petro­leum Company Limited (MPCL) crashed in North Wazir­is­tan on Saturday, kil­l­ing six people and inj­uring 10 others on board.

Sources said the Mi-8 helicopter went down near an oilfield in the Shewa tehsil of North Wazir­istan shortly after take-off. They said the pilots attempted to land the helicopter safely, but the tail rotor struck the ground, leading to the crash.

The helicopter had 21 individuals on board, including two foreign pilots. Sources confirmed that the crash was caused by a technical fault and no signs of sabotage were detected during the initial investigation.

Mari Petroleum operates the Waziristan Block, formerly known as Bannu West, situated in North Waziristan district. The company made a significant gas and condensate discovery at the Shewa-1 exploratory well in June 2022, marking the largest hydrocarbon find in the country in 12 years.

The company recently achieved another success at the Shewa-2 appraisal-cum-exploratory well, spudded on June 12, 2023.

The Pakistan Civil Avi­a­tion Authority (PCAA) said in a statement that the Mi-8MTV-1 helicopter (registration mark: RA-24537 MSN 97518) took off from Islamabad at 11:15am for Shewa and later departed for Bannu at 1:15pm after a passenger change.

However, the helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing at Shewa due to engine failure. During the landing, the tail rotor struck the ground, causing the helicopter to topple.

In all, 21 people were on board, including six crew members, a safety officer and 14 passengers. Search and rescue operations, supported by a military helicopter, were initiated from Peshawar to evacuate the injured. Sources said the injured were airlifted CMH.

The helicopter, leased from Russia’s PANH Helicopters, was supporting Mari Petroleum operations in remote areas of KP and Balo­chistan. It was operating under a wet lease agreement facilitated by Princely Jets, with the PCAA granting permission for six months.

The lease was due to expire on Sept 28, 2024, the day of the crash.

The Bureau of Safety Investigation will conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2024