Deaths in Budgam due to Indian missile fired at Mi17 V5 helicopter?

A recent investigation in the Budgam Mi17 V5 helicopter crash on 27 February 2019 revealed that an Indian Air Defence missile was fired shortly before it crashed near Srinagar. The incident claimed lives of six air force personnel and a civilian.

The crucial part of the investigation is the final moments of the crash where the IFF (Identity, Friend or Foe) system is being looked at to determine if they were off or on, reported the Economic Times.

The investigation will now proceed in a technical direction to find whether the IFF systems failed despite multiple layers of security and how the system can be improved.

The missile was activated after the air defence alert was sounded over Jammu and Kashmir after 25 Pakistani jets were detected on the 27 February morning.

As per the report, the alert indicated that low flying UAVs also might cross the border, it is possible that a slow-moving target like Mi 17 V5 helicopter could be mistaken for a UAV. The report also said that the Air Force might conduct an inquiry into the matter as per the report.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Kashmir Monitor staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)