Watch: IAF’s Chinook Helicopter Airlifts Crashed Mi-17 From Kedarnath 

In 2018, a Mi-17 helicopter of the Indian Air Force (IAF) had crashed while attempting to land at a helipad close to Kedarnath in Uttrakhand.

The helicopter had crashed after a collision with an iron girder.

The pilot of the helicopter had suffered minor injuries in the crash. The IAF had left the helicopter at the crash site after the unfortunate incident.

Today, nearly two years after the helicopter crashed, its damaged airframe has been airlifted by a Chinook helicopter of the IAF.

Preparations for this had been on for over two weeks. IAF officers had visited Kedarnath to take stock of the preparations to airlift the airframe.

While the Mi-17 is a Soviet/Russian-origin helicopter, Chinooks have been acquired by the IAF from US-based Boeing.

The IAF has inducted 15 Chinooks into service.

Chinooks have been playing an important part in maintaining Indian forces at the frontlines amid the ongoing standoff in eastern Ladakh.

Based at the Air Force Station in Chandigarh, these helicopters are capable of lifting around 11 tonnes of cargo or 45 fully armed troops.

The Chinooks can also carry underslung payloads like the M777 ultra-light howitzer, a 155 mm artillery gun inducted for use along the China front.