Group Captain Varun Singh, the lone survivor of the helicopter crash in which Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and his wife were killed, died on Wednesday. The 39-year-old fighter pilot battled for life for eight days in the military hospital, Bengaluru.
The MI-17 helicopter carrying 14 passengers, including the crew, crashed on December 8 in Coonoor near the Defence Services Staff College(DSSC), Wellington.
General Rawat, his wife Madhulika, and 11 other military personnel died the same day. Nearly all of them suffered serious burn injuries.
Group Captain Singh was rescued from the wreckage with serious injuries. He was first taken to the military hospital in Wellington and then airlifted to Bengaluru.
“The IAF is deeply saddened to inform the passing away of braveheart Group Captain Varun Singh, who succumbed this morning to the injuries sustained in the helicopter accident on December 8, 2021. IAF offers sincere condolences and stands firmly with the bereaved family,” the Indian Air Force said on Twitter.
In August, Group Captain Singh was honoured with Shaurya Chakra, India’s third-highest peacetime gallantry award after the Ashok Chakra and Kirti Chakra, for displaying exemplary composure and skill when his Tejas aircraft developed a technical snag during a sortie in October last year.
Known to be an excellent test pilot, the officer is survived by an 11-year-old son, an eight-year-old daughter, and his wife. His father, Colonel (retired) KP Singh, had served in the Army Air Defence (AAD).
The Group Captain’s family originally hails from Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh and now lives in Bhopal.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed anguish at the passing away of GroupCaptain Singh.