Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) is
the probable cause behind the killing of former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS)
General Bipin Rawat and others in the fatal Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter crash
in Tamil Nadu’s Coonoor in December last, the tri-service inquiry ordered into
the chopper crash stated.

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The findings have been sent for legal
review after which the report would be submitted to the Indian government, a
defence official said on condition of anonymity, The Hindu reported.

“The findings have been sent for legal
vetting. It will take about 10 to 15 days for finalisation,” the official said
on Friday.

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Two officials involved in the investigation
said CFIT was the most probable cause of the crash and the inquiry report, once
submitted, would throw more light on it.

The IAF Mi-17V5
helicopter with General Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 12 others including
his staff, the pilots and crew was enroute to the Defence Services Staff
College, Wellington, from Sulur on December 8 when it crashed in Coonoor in
Tamil Nadu close to the destination.

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Following the unfortunate incident, a
tri-service inquiry was ordered by the IAF headed by Air Marshal Manvendra
Singh, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Training Command to investigate the
crash.

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As part of the investigation, the Flight
Data Recorder (FDR), as well as the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR),), were
recovered and sent for analysis to reconstruct the last moments before the
crash.

What
is CFIT?

CFIT means that the pilot was in full
control of the aircraft but due to lack of situational awareness the aircraft
strikes the terrain, explained Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur (Retd), a
former helicopter pilot.

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“An example could be of an aircraft doing
low flying over a large expanse of water and striking it due to lack of depth
perception. A similar strike could happen over snow,” he said elaborating on
what CFIT means.

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According to the US Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), CFIT is an unintentional collision with terrain (the
ground, a mountain, a body of water, or an obstacle) while an aircraft is under
positive control. “Most often, the pilot or crew is unaware of the looming
disaster until it is too late. CFIT most commonly occurs in the approach or
landing phase of flight,” an FAA fact sheet stated.