DHRUV CRASH UPDATE #2: Fire Ruled Out

According to the latest information coming in from my sources in Ecuador, there was absolutely no fire that broke out in the tail of the ALH Dhruv that crashed in the country on Tuesday. A careful study by experts, involving both visual analysis of footage as well as prima facie analysis of the wreckage, has unequivocally ruled out that there was any fire as suggested by certain eye-witness accounts. As a matter of fact, there was no post-crash fire either.

LiveFist has learnt from sources concerned with the investigation that on impact, the Dhruv’s engines surged, and hence the visible flame emerging from the exhaust (see the part between the 3rd and 4th second in this video). Soon thereafter, the engines shut down due to fuel starvation. Indeed, according to experts, the fact that there was no fire post-impact once again demonstrates and establishes the crashworthiness of the Dhruv platform, where the fuel tanks have maintained their integrity and the fuel has been shut off automatically.

19 thoughts on “DHRUV CRASH UPDATE #2: Fire Ruled Out”

  1. Way to put your spin on incident. Crash has not been investigated yet, but someone is trying to blame pilots. Two helicopters of this type have crashed during parade conditions, shows something up with helicopter. Made in India (;

  2. This is AWESOME!!!! now next questions:

    1. The chopper landed on nose first…

    Could the pilot maneuver the bird ?
    Was there mechanical / hydralics or any failures ? (this will be figured out by data recorder).

    2. did the pilot try to land when he discovered any issues ?

    3. did he get any warning signs/signals etc ? (may not get from maneuvers are planned or will ignore those)

    4. What does the pilots who are alive have to say ?

    5. (Dumb q) is this the first time this maneuver are done by these pilots in those conditions ?

    -Murali

  3. Definately pilot error. This area is located at very high altitude so the air is very thin. The pilot was manuvering the helicopter sideways close to the ground and could'nt straighten out the helicopter in time because of the tin air and he was close to the ground. This kind of error is committed by even very experienced pilots.

  4. I said it yesterday itself when Shiv posted that some "eyewitness accounts" described a fire in the tail section before it crashed, that this was patently false. There are very clear pictures indicating that the pilots over-steered and banked the aircraft nearly 70-80 degrees at less than 10-15 feet altitude..to me it seems like pilot error more than anything else. to blame the helicopter just because it is Indian and not European is ridiculous ! any number of helicopters crash the world over when the pilots make mistakes..

    to suggest that there are irregularities in the deal is a clear attempt to malign the helicopter and prevent further sales in Latin America, which looked like a very good market for the Dhruv, with even Argentina and Bolivia being interested.

  5. HAL really needs to be proactive and make some statements in the Equadorian media, clarifying its stand and making it clear that the age of the engines is from the date that they're used, not from the date they're manufactured. if they were stored properly, it doesn't effect their service life. and there are no issues with the rotor blades whatsoever. it happened to one helicopter due to negligent quality control and appropriate action was taken. After all, there are more than a 100 Dhruv's in service today, with a good service history, so its not a fleet-wide issue as their media is trying to make it look like.

  6. Great News. This stands as a testimony for the fact that Dhruv is indeed a well built machine. Some external forces in Equador with vested interests are trying hard to malign dhruv.

  7. IF it is over-steered, could there not be a control law that prevents that? I would hope there is one already in place.

  8. SHIV, one BR bugger has posted that you are pestering ppl placed in ecquador every for updates. Trash! we thank you for maintaining continuity on the event that took place which obviously put the credibility of DHRUV, HAL and INDIA at stake. HAL should conduct a clean technical enquiry in to the cause of the incident,which requires the cooperation of the pilots who survived the crash!

  9. I second the opinion that this is a well-built machine. I was at the crash site of the Sarang helicopter within a few hours. The fuselage was remarkably intact inspite of a tremendous impact with the ground. Sad, it went nose-first, so the pilot was killed and co-pilot survived with severe spinal injuries. But any passengers properly strapped in would have survived with minor injuries. Again, even though the aircraft was fuelled, there was no rupture of the fuel cells.

  10. WHO WILL SAVE HAL? HAL Chairman's press release on the crash is probably the most shocking things of the century. The Press Release issued from Bangalore doesn't have any meat and it's clear Nayak and his joker Directors are scared on the Media reports. The very first para of the release itself says HAL cannot react on Media reports. As an avid avition writer for more than 40 years now, I want to know why Nayak (apparently he was holidaying when the crash happend)is avoiding the Media. Insiders in HAL say that he was least bothered about the crash and was busy pushing his candidate as the next MD Bangalore Complex post. My dad worked in HAL and it's sad that the Company is now being handled by a group of complete bunch of jokers who are just filling their pockets. The days ahead will be interesting as lots of skeletons will come out of the coffins, including the top management fight, lobbying for posts and so on. What's the MoD brass doing to save HAL? The government must wake up and do something before the current buch of idiots finishes the Company. Which project is running on time? Who is looking into the recruitment mess and favouritism? Where is the acountability? A probe is must to dig out the facts. Mr Shiv Aroor, like the way you put the DRDO under scanner, may be you must HAL too and see what will come out!!

  11. @Anonymous at 1:58 pm,
    Doesn't the same apply to you too. Blaming the "Made in India" product BEFORE the investigation results are out. At least those blaming the pilot are saying it based on video of helicopter manoeuver prior to crash and LACK of ANY fire or smoke prior to impact.
    Even on roads, performance cars are often involved in accidents because the machine's capability is beyond the man's decision making capability.

  12. Our Anon friend @1:58 AM is probably forgetting the fact that Investigation is not a magic hymn which displays reasons,point wise, in thin air. Investigation has to start at one end and then goes on by connecting the dots. Clearly in this crash, helo showed no signs fire, as suggested by some eye witness. Investigation can start on this point and start analyzing the facts further.

  13. Anonymous@1:58 is a moron.
    Eyewitness account of fire turned out to be false and fire stands ruled out. He says two copters have crashed in Parade conditions- the second one seems to be his creation. He says enquiry not completed and makes slanting observations as Made In India.
    Don't get this moron's drift.

  14. After watching the video of the crash, I felt that those pilots were confusing the heli with some fighter jet. What kind of jerk would try to pull off a fast breaking turn with a heli?!

    And anyway… we didn't sell the Dhruv to them for setting up their own version of the 'Sarangs' – it was sold as a pure load carrier. You can make a heli crash-worthy but you can't make it jerk-worthy.

    And my response to the first anon porki: Waa-le-kum ASS-SALAAMI to you! The fact that we can sell substandard equipment to the rest of the world and make money on it shows how smart we are. You idiots are only good only at exporting terrorism, so just stick to it O.K?

  15. When we have stupid dorks and India haters who are eagerly waiting to spin their yarns as to the low quality of Indian products, who needs the Pakistanis Chinks or even the gungho yanks.

    These myopic morons just cannot resist the temptation to deride anything Indian.

    If they are really Indian in origin, are they the traitors who supply defence and security related information to our enemies? If that can be ascertained, they should be lined up and shot like rabid dogs.

    I am all for constructive criticisms and advice but I hate people who shit through theri mouth just for the sake of giving vent to their hatred of India.

  16. Not that I am a expert in choppers or any other case in that matter, But to a layman, it looks like a pilot induced error. There was no fire on the chopper.

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