Kochi: When Keralites struggled to rescue people marooned across the state, a naval captain’s daring act stood out. Captain Raj Kumar landed his Sea King helicopter on the roof terrace of a flooded house to bale out its inhabitants.
The officer attached to the Southern Naval Command has become a superstar after a video of the breathtaking rescue of 26 people went viral on social media. The captain who hails from Palakkad is no stranger to headlines. He was honoured with a ‘Shourya Chakra’ for his tireless rescue mission in the time of Cyclone Ockhi.
Sea King 42 C is one of the large helicopters in the service of the Indian Navy. Manoeuvring the big bird to land on the roof of a house standing among taller buildings and trees is not a task for the faint-hearted. This has the stamp of an expert, people who are familiar with aviation said.
Captain Raj Kumar chose the unconventional method to save on time and energy in the extraordinary situation. The textbook process, in which the chopper hovers over the area of evacuation while the rescuers winch themselves down in metal ropes and carry the evacuees back, takes a lot of time.
Captain Raj Kumar landed the chopper on the terrace to let in the waiting people without delay. They could be flown back to safety thanks to the out-of-the-box thinking.
Sea King’s blades rotate 203 times in a minute. The copter with large rotor blades is difficult to land in a limited space without even a person to assist in aircraft handling on the ground.
Captain Raj Kumar also flies the Chetak helicopters. He is the go-to person for the authorities whenever VIPs visit.
Sea King 42 C is used as a transporter for personnel and an air ambulance in times of disasters. They are also used for VIP escorts and search and rescue.
The other Sea King, 42 B, is used by the Indian Navy to locate and neutralise vessels and submarines.
