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26 troops martyred in copter crash in Orakzai Agency Updated at: 2100 PST, Friday, July 03, 2009

PESHAWAR: Twenty-six army troops were martyred when a cargo helicopter of Pak Army crashed in Orakzai Agency on Friday.

Official sources have said that investigation into the tragic incident is being carried out.

According to Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), the helicopter crashed in Orakzai Agency after developing a technical fault.

26 troops martyred in copter crash in Orakzai Agency

Does the Pakistani army negligent in maintaining these helos? Any time any serious operation starts like now or the earthquake in 2005, helos start dropping from the sky.

I guess nothing will come out of this "inquiry" as well!

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A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs, a woman will pay $1 for a $2 item she doesn't.

Sad and unfortunate.

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“Be careful what you wish for, you might actually get it.”

My deepest condolonces to the families of these brave soldiers, May God Bless their souls. Investigations are underway, there were 41 soldiers on board which means the heli was overcrowded because MI17 is not built to carry this sort of weight.

it was 26, now it is 41?

If it was a disciplined army, people seriously would get fired. They were still exceeding aircraft weight after the fokker incident by putting mangoes on them until the foreign trainer refused to fly.

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A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs, a woman will pay $1 for a $2 item she doesn't.

inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi rajioon

ditto on mervik's comments, would like to see what the investigation concludes..and who was (ir)responsible for the blatant overloading.

inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi rajioon


very sad event

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looooooooooool

The copter must have been of a grotesque size or over loaded....because 41 soldiers just don't seem to fit in a heli...

May god bless the soldiers

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www . hidaya . org

Well there are choppers that can lift an army company though Pakistan doesn't have it.

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A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs, a woman will pay $1 for a $2 item she doesn't.

Ofcourse, but won't aircrafts be more effecient and perhaps cheaper (?)for the cause of transporting multiple soldiers...?

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www . hidaya . org

I guess americans must be really stupid to have made chinooks?

Btw, how do you plan to land jets in waziristan?

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A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs, a woman will pay $1 for a $2 item she doesn't.

Americans are infact stupid, its just that they have unity and the few intellectuals are at top. In pakistan all the intellectuals are ex-pats...or not part of the political systen

And yes, perhaps.

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www . hidaya . org

Too many conflicting reports coming in, some are saying 26 soldiers died some are saying 41 died. But one thing is forsure that the Talibans didnt shoot it down. Immediately after the crash, Cobras were sent to the area to ensure that Taliban dont sneak in around the crash site. A couple of Taliban fighters were killed when they were sighted by the Cobras.

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It was Mil 17... which is one of the biggest choppers in the world. ISPR is claiming "technical fault", but it was most prolly taken down by a Stinger or and RPG from taliban.
This is the same type of chopper that airlifted the whole srilankan touring party from Gaddafi stadium in one go.



Mil 17

General characteristics
Crew: Three – two pilots and one engineer
Capacity: 32 passengers or 4,000 kg (8,800 lb) on internal/4,500 kg (10,250 lb) external hardpoints.
Length: 18.42 m (60 ft 5 in)
Rotor diameter: 21.352 m (69 ft 10 in)
Height: 4.76 m (15 ft 7 in)
Disc area: 356 m² (3,830 ft²)
Empty weight: 7,100 kg (15,700 lb)
Loaded weight: 11,100 kg (24,470 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 13,000 kg (28,700 lb)

The ISPR is quite competent to cover its tracks when it has to.

The heli was not shot down by RPG or Stinger, it was brought down because of technical failure. The heli was carrying 41 soldiers, and the capacity is for 32 people that is why it was flying low. All these soldiers were on leave and i guess that is why they ignored the standard procedure and crammed in, this is what happens if safety precautions are not followed.
P.S. We are fighting a war here, there are going to be casualties.