AFOVA New Letter 2 of Year 2021

Section 7 – Panorama CV 2 No. 02 / 2021 Page 289 of 332 an Egg-Shell effect - where we saw only white around and can be completely disoriented). The coloured tents were the saving grace! Hearing the helicopter noise, three mountaineers came out from their tents started waving at us. But, where to land the helicopter was the question. Finally, we decided to put down the helicopter and held it it lightly - just enough to touch down on one skid on the fresh snow. I was on the controls while Sqn Ldr Martin got into a conversation with the mountaineer. Meanwhile, I saw one tent collapsed with the occupant inside! Two mountaineers wrapped the tent over the person and came to the running helicopter and deposited the person. One of them indicated a thumbs-down sign. One of mountaineers, Ms Naoko Kamazawa, was dead! Another lady, Ms Miyoko Yajima, was dangerously ill, was carried to the helicopter and deposited over the body. We asked the LO to get off - the helicopter was already over- weight! The return journey was also eventful! We came out from the narrow valley leading to the Nun in heavy rains, looked for a landing patch on the banks of the Suru River and landed. It was a one-hour wait - with a dead body and a very sick Japanese! We, finally, flew to Kargil at about 1630 h. The Army and the Police initially refused to accept the body - but, after various calls to Srinagar, the Police took over the body. We flew the survivor lady to Srinagar (Badami Bagh Helipad, near the Military Hospital) in the dusk hours and returned to the airfield. Squadron Leader David R. Martin, in a interview to India Today years later, described the difficulty of this mission: "Though I have done about 40 such operations, in this particular case it was not easy. The strong winds all along the narrowing valleys could have smashed the aircraft at any moment."