AN expression of respect is due to those who lost their lives in the tragic helicopter crash near Mansehra on Thursday.

One of relief is in order for the narrow escape passengers in another Mi-17 helicopter, belonging to the PAF, had on the same day near Chitral.

Reaching out to an injured soldier in Gilgit, the army’s medical team travelling in the helicopter that crashed near Mansehra was motivated by the noblest of all ideals: saving a human life and alleviating human suffering. In their passing, they bring to fore the reality of how certain risks cannot be avoided and certain tasks can never be put off.

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The incident, which came less than three months after the Mi-17 helicopter crash in Naltar near Gilgit, also highlighted the hectic times — replete with pressing, unavoidable, urgent jobs — that this country is passing through.

This entails plenty of activity, including urgent assignments for the Mi-17s, a model that had five accidents over the past decade until it met with two in a day on Thursday.

Back in May, the Mi-17 flew a select group of envoys to Pakistan on a mission aimed at opening up the country to the whole world.

The Naltar accident was blamed on a mechanical fault. Of Thursday’s incidents, technical fault was again ascribed to the helicopter which crash-landed in Chitral whereas the weather was held responsible for the deadly plunge near Mansehra.

An inquiry should bring greater details about exactly what went wrong, and where, during the journey.

Prima facie, Pakistan’s Mi-17 helicopters, made in Russia and refurbished with American help, are a case requiring some serious scrutiny and perhaps some fast improvement in hardware.

Investigation must already be under way in the wake of the huge loss at Naltar.

The latest double blow must take the probe deeper and lead to comprehensive redress. No one — not even those who are taught to look the gravest danger in the eye — should be allowed to risk beyond what is absolutely necessary.

Published in Dawn, August 8th, 2015

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