An Indian Navy Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) on a routine sortie with three personnel on board made an emergency landing off the Mumbai coast on Wednesday, an official said.

The crew was rescued by a naval patrol aircraft, said the official as per PTI.

“Indian Navy ALH on a routine sortie off Mumbai ditched close to the coast. Immediate search and rescue ensured the safe recovery of the crew of 3 by a naval patrol craft,” the official said.

The Advance Light Helicopter Dhruv faced a sudden power outage and lost height, which forced the pilot to ditch the chopper near Mumbai’s coast.

“Ditching” refers to an emergency landing on water.

An inquiry to investigate the incident has been ordered, the official added.

The incident lies within the trend of countless aircraft crashes that have severely impacted the Indian armed forces in recent years.

A total of 31 people lost their lives in accidents involving 15 military helicopters that included four ALH, four Cheetah, two ALH (WSI), three Mi-17V5, a Mi-17 and a Chetak, during the period from March 2017 to December 2021, according to official details.

In a previous incident this year, the pilot of a trainer aircraft was killed after it crashed in Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa district, 400 km from the state capital Bhopal.

In October 2022, the crash of an Army Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) carrying weapons led to the deaths of all five occupants aboard the chopper.

As per media reports, all of the country’s operational ALH, a total of over 300, were grounded in order to undergo safety inspections following the fatal crash as a precaution.

An official source had stated last year that all operational choppers would pass through a one-time check, and will only resume operations following that. A report had also claimed that it was solely a preventative measure taken in case of a serious accident.