IAF Wing Commander Sidharth Vashisht, Martyred in Budgam Crash, Laid To Rest With Full Military Honours; In Uniform, His Wife Pays Tribute To Him
The last rites of Wing Commander Sidharth Vashisht were performed in Chandigarh on Friday with full military honours. Wg Cd Vashisht died in a Mi-17 V5 helicopter crash in Jammu and Kashmir’ Budgam district along with five other Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel.
Chandigarh, March 1: The last rites of Wing Commander Sidharth Vashisht were performed in Chandigarh on Friday with full military honours. Wg Cd Vashisht died in a Mi-17 V5 helicopter crash in Jammu and Kashmir’ Budgam district along with five other Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel. The mortal remains of the officer had arrived at the Air Force station in Chandigarh on Thursday and were taken to the cremation ground from his residence in Sector 44 on a bedecked IAF vehicle. Budgam Crash: List of 6 IAF Personnel Killed in Mi-17 Chopper Accident.
The IAF officer’s wife, Aarti is also a squadron leader. She laid a wreath before the last rites were performed. Siddharth Vashisht's father lit the funeral pyre. Air Force personnel fired in the air and reversed their arms as a mark of respect. Various political leaders including Chandigarh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Sanjay Tandon and Haryana Minister Naib Saini. IAF Fighter Jet Crashes in Jammu And Kashmir's Budgam, Pilot, Co-Pilot And 1 Civilian Dead.
The IAF officer was a fourth-generation member from his family in the armed forces. He was commissioned in the IAF in 2010 and last month, he received commendation for his role in the rescue operation during the Kerala floods. The other IAF personnel who lost their lives in the crash were identified as Squadron Leader Ninad Mandavgane Sergeant Vikrant Sherawat, Corporal Deepak Pandey, Corporal Pankaj Kumar and engineer Vishal Kumar Pandey.
One civilian was also killed in the crash. According to reports, the crashed helicopter land in the fields of Budgam, where a local, identified as 20-year-old Kifayat Hussain, was caught in the explosion following the crash.
The accident occurred at 10:10 am on the morning of February 27, at a time when the IAF was responding to the air space violation by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF). Mi-17 V5 is a transport chopper. Initially, there were rumours that the ill-fated Mi-17 chopper was attacked by the PAF which crossed the Line of Control on Wednesday. Pakistan later denied any involvement in the crash.
(With inputs from PTI)
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 01, 2019 06:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).