In a statement Pawan Hans said, “The helicopter, carrying six ONGC employees and two pilots, had taken off from ONGC’s offshore rig at Bombay High when, suddenly, the door fell off.”
“We cannot say whose fault it was; maybe it was the pilot or the passengers. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is investigating the incident and only then will a clear picture will emerge,” added the firm.
While the DGCA has confirmed it will be sending a team to the rig to investigate the incident, ONGC believes it was pilot error.
“It might have been the pilot’s fault because the door was not shut properly before take-off, and so it subsequently may have fallen due to the wind. It happened at around 6pm and the pilot touched down back at the base,” said an anonymous ONGC official, speaking to the media.
