Andhra CM has a close shave in mid-air

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy had a miraculous escape while he was returning from a trip to Mahbubnagar district on Sunday when the new AW 139 helicopter developed a major technical fault mid-air.
The newly acquired Rs 64-crore AW 139 helicopter was on its first flight and everything appeared fine on the upward journey but when the CM, his special secretary K Prabhakara Reddy and Chief Security Officer Uday Kumar were returning by the chopper the electrical fuse suddenly started popping out.
Pilot Capt. M Jagan Mohan Raju tried to fix it and continued the flight.
After a few minutes, the electrical fuse popped out again but luckily did not cause any major trouble in the 20-minute flight journey, a top official of AP Aviation Corporation told PTI on condition of anonymity.
Neither the Chief Minister nor his aides were informed about this technical fault which expert say could have been disastrous.
The Chief Minister was originally scheduled to fly tomorrow to Adilabad district in the chopper which was imported from Italy on November 5.
Security agencies in the state have already expressed apprehensions about safety aspects of the new helicopter as it has not undertaken any test flights in India.
11/11/08 MSN India

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Nov 2008, Safety Nov 2008