After landing, the wheels of the Indian Air Force aircraft sank into a newly concreted landing pad; the problem was resolved quickly and without injuries.
An unusual episode marked the official visit of the President of India, Draupadi Murmuto the state of Kerala this week. The helicopter Indian Air Force (IAF) carrying the head of state was temporarily trapped after landing in a newly prepared area in Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadiumno distrito de Pathanamthitta.
Some reports indicate that it was a Thousand Mi‑17 or similar Indian Air Force helicopter.
According to local vehicles such as NDTV and the Times of Indiapart of the newly concreted helipad gave way under the weight of the aircraft, causing the wheels to be partially sunk into the still wet surface. Police and firefighters present at the scene acted quickly and managed to free the helicopter by pushing it manually, without causing any damage or injuries.
The change of landing site would have been decided at the last minute due to adverse weather conditions in the Nilackal region, requiring the emergency preparation of a new helipad. The concrete, however, had not had enough time to harden before the presidential landing.
Despite the setback, President Murmu didn’t take any risk and continued with his schedule normally, including a visit to the Sabarimala temple. The local government informed that a review will be carried out on the security and infrastructure procedures used in official travel.
The video of the incident, which shows the moment the helicopter’s wheels sink and teams rush to help, went viral on Indian social media, generating comments about the lack of planning and improvisation in high-level operations.
The wheels of the helicopter which carried President Droupadi Murmu for her Sabarimala visit got stuck in a depression in the newly concreted helipad at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium at Pramadam here when it landed on Wednesday morning.
After the President left for Pamba by… pic.twitter.com/fDIvVeac3k
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Sources: NDTV, Times of India | Twitter @TheSiasatDaily. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
