Pawan Hans chopper missing off Mumbai, 5 on board

Mumbai: A Pawan Hans helicopter with at least five persons, including ONGC officials, on board has gone missing shortly after take-off from Juhu Airport here on Saturday, an official said. The Dauphin chopper, VT PWA, took off at 10.20 a.m. Just 15 minutes later, it suddenly lost contact with both the Mumbai ATC and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). At that time, it was thought to be flying around 55 km off the Mumbai shoreline, presumably en route to the ONGC's Bombay High oilfields, around 175 km northwest from here. The Indian Coast Guard has diverted a ship and an aircraft to the region for a search and rescue operation, said an official spokesperson. Choppers and aircraft from other bases have also been deployed to search the missing copter.