Army Cheetal carries out evacuation of injured mountaineer at 18,600 ft in Ladakh

Indian Army pilots conducted a daring high-altitude evacuation of an injured soldier near Ladakh’s Nun-Kun peaks after severe weather conditions made the rescue operation exceptionally challenging. The mission, carried out by two Army Aviation Corps pilots in a single-engine Cheetal helicopter, involved landing at 18,600 feet with one skid barely touching the snow-covered slope. Despite their efforts, the injured junior commissioned officer later succumbed to injuries at an Army hospital in Kargil, officials confirmed on Sunday.

The evacuation took place on Saturday, with the Leh-based HQs 14 Corps describing it as a “daring high-altitude casualty evacuation.” Mission details shared by the Corps highlighted the extreme difficulties faced, including no landing space and strong winds. To execute the rescue, the pilots lightened the helicopter by removing non-essential equipment and carrying limited fuel, demonstrating exceptional skill and precision.

This operation follows a recent Cheetal helicopter crash near Leh’s Tangtse area on May 20. The crash, which occurred during a routine sortie, injured two pilots—a lieutenant colonel and a major—and Major General Sachin Mehta, the General Officer Commanding of the Karu-based 3 Infantry Division. All three survived with minor injuries. The Cheetal, equipped with a modern and fuel-efficient TM333–2M2 engine, features an automatic back-up engine control system and was designed to enhance high-altitude operations.

The Army Aviation Corps operates around 25 Cheetals, which are re-engined versions of the older Cheetah helicopters. These aircraft have been critical in Ladakh, particularly in the Zanskar range, where extreme conditions test the limits of both pilots and equipment. However, concerns over the aging Cheetah and Chetak fleets have grown following a series of crashes, prompting the Army to accelerate modernization efforts.

The Army plans to phase out these decades-old helicopters within the next one to two years, replacing them with new light utility helicopters (LUHs) over the next eight to 10 years. The modernization drive aims to improve operational safety and reliability. The Army requires around 250 new helicopters and plans to meet this demand through a two-pronged approach: inducting locally produced LUHs and leasing similar choppers as a temporary solution.

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which previously produced 625 Cheetah and Chetak choppers under license agreements with French aerospace firms Aerospatiale and Sud-Aviation (now Airbus), continues to maintain and repair these aging aircraft. The Cheetah was first produced in 1970, while the Chetak entered service even earlier.

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