Remains airlifted to Chd 56 yrs after An-12 crash

Kullu: The remains of four soldiers, recovered last week from the Chandrabhaga-13 mountain in Himachal Pradesh’s Lahaul Spiti district more than five decades after their Indian Air Force An-12 aircraft had crashed in 1968, were on Wednesday airlifted to Chandigarh after autopsy.Army helicopters took off from the the Spiti valley’s Losar helipad with the remains. An official from the local administration has confirmed that a medical team was present on Tuesday evening when the Army expedition brought the remains to Losar to be sent to the soldiers’ respective villages for cremation.

On Sept 29, more than 56 years after the crash that had claimed 102 lives, the Dogra Scouts had found these bodies on the CB-13 mountain’s Dhaka glacier on the fifth day of their search mission.Lahaul-Spiti’s superintendent of police, Mayank Chaudhary, described how the soldiers — sepoy Narayan Singh from Pauri Garhwal, sepoy Munshi Ram from Haryana’s Rewari, craftsman Thomas Cherian from Kerala’s Kollam, and Malkhan Singh from Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh — were identified from their badges and personal articles found on the site. The Army matched those with its records from the crash day and communicated with the families about the findings.On Feb 7, 1968, the Army had lost this An-12 to bad weather over the Rohtang Pass shortly after the takeoff from Chandigarh for Leh. In 2003, mountaineers had first discovered the aircraft’s wreckage along with a soldier’s remains and subsequent searches in 2007 and 2018 led to the recovery of more bodies. In 2019, the Dogra Scouts found the An-12’s engine and cockpit door. So far, nine bodies have been recovered. The latest search operation will conclude on Oct 10.

Army expedition recovers four more bodies from AN-12 crash near Rohtang Pass in 1968

In a significant achievement, the Army has recovered four more bodies from the Antonov-12 aircraft that crashed near Rohtang Pass in 1968. Among them, three military personnel have been identified. This follows decades of arduous search missions led by the Dogra Scouts, bringing solace to the victims' families while the search continues until Oct 10.

1968 air crash: Thomas Cherians family waits for mortal remain

After 56 years, the Odalil family from Elanthoor, Pathanamthitta, received news about Thomas Cherian, who was killed in an Indian Air Force crash over the Rohtang Pass. With the recovery of Cherian's remains, the family can now hold a proper funeral at St Peter's Orthodox Church. Cherian had served as an Army craftsman for three years before his untimely death.

1968 IAF plane crash: Chit with wife name helped identify Himachal Pradesh sepoy's body

The remains of sepoy Narayan Singh, missing since a 1968 IAF plane crash, were identified and returned to his village in Uttarakhand. A note with his wife's name, 'Basanti Devi,' was discovered with him. His family held a ceremonial tribute to finally achieve closure. Rituals will be performed by his stepson, Jaiveer Singh.