tawang helicopter

john ullman

Greetings All,

Has anyone taken the helicopter from Guwahati to Tawang?

I have heard that it was not safe. What is your opinion?

However, the helicopter is 45 minutes v. 2 days by road.

If it turns out to be safe -- i would use it one way, from Tawang to Guwahati.

Bhaswaran

I have heard of this service but have not heard any unsafe reasons. The terrain is mountaneous but not a very tricky one for helicopter services. I think u should go ahead with your plan.

CANADON

I looked at that a bit.All I know is that when describing the safety record for that company the LP guide used the term "atrocious".Not a comforting word.I don't know how light your travelling but there's a 10 kilo luggage limit.

Bhaswaran

Just remember, guides often misguides, and at many times, intentionally, due to personal reasons (may be low commission rate, low profit)

tacita

of course, whether it HAS BEEN safe and whether it "turns out to be safe" [for you] are two entirely different matters. helicopters, by their nature, are not the safest aircraft and notoriously difficult to fly for even the most experienced pilots. that being said, i will gladly be situating myself into one such craft in bagdogra, weather permitting, for a flight to gangtok. if you can find out the name of the parent company for the birds, you might be able to check for safety info online, much the same as with the more standard commercial airlines. some do have better safety records than others, to be sure.

i tend foolishly to take a devil-may-care attitude more often than i should, and have jumped from many a perfectly good and well-flying airplane anf flown a few others without full confidence. so i may not be the best source of advice here. unless i'd heard something bad with a cited source, i'd probably take the ride - and probably will myself. if that's my time, then crashing into the foothills of the himalaya probably isn't such a bad way to go.

presumably, you've googled the company?

__________________
Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. ~Helen Keller

tacita

i've looked about a bit. it seems the helicopter company that operates that route is the same as out of bagdogra, pawan hans. at least back in 2001, their safety record was seemingly pretty poor, looks like maintenance problems and part of their fleet was grounded.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/a...w/19214049.cms

i haven't taken the time to look at anything more current, but this should be enough to get you going. either into, or running away from, the aircraft.

CANADON

Well I've been looking at the Lonely Planet Guide again where i gleamed the negative reports.They seem to indicate the Bagdogra to Gangtok ride is with the Sikkim Helicopter Service who they appearto recommend.Safety record criticism is confined to the company you mentioned above that services Guwahati, Tawang,Shillong and Itanagar.

tacita

the local commercial or d/b/a name for an aviation company is not necessarily the same as the corporate parent. the bagdogra-to-gangtok service IS, i am told by a local travel company in gangtok, operated by pawan hans.

i don't think you're going to find anything on IM to assauge your fears or convince you not to fly with them. first of all, anyone here who has flown that route lived to tell about it. on the other hand, you now know the adverse safety stats and have sufficient information to do more homework. i'd say keep following the thread if you have some time, do some more research, and go with your guy instincts. as i said, helicopters are more dangerous generally than standard fixed-wing aircraft, which is why a lot of people won't consider flying in them to begin with.

personally, my plan is to climb aboard unless the bird is obviously poorly maintained, the pilot is drunk, and the weather foul. (or if my instincts tell me it ain't wise, even for no cognizable reason.)