Armymen's wives to meet Parrikar over "outdated" copters issue

A group of women comprising wives of Army officers, will meet Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar in New Delhi tomorrow, urging him to stop the use of "outdated" Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.
"Presently, there are 175 Cheetah and Chetak helicopters in Army service. These choppers are 30-40 years old and had been involved in several crashes killing pilots and defence personnel," Meenal Wagh-Bhosale, wife of an Army officer, heading the delegation told reporters here today.
The last crash happened on October 1 when a Cheetah belonging to the Army Aviation crashed in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district, leading to the death of two pilots and an engineer.

"We will meet the Defence Minister and urge him to stop the use of these choppers. We want new and modern helicopters to avoid crashes and save valuable lives of pilots and other personnel," she said adding that both Cheetah and Chetak have single engines unlike two in the modern models that make the latter more reliable in emergencies.
The ministry has been trying to procure new helicopters for the defence forces, including the Army Aviation since 2007, she said.