Six Army Personnel Martyred in Balochistan Helicopter Crash

 Six Army Personnel Martyred in Balochistan Helicopter Crash

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) today said that the wreckage of a Pakistan Army aviation chopper that went missing in Balochistan yesterday has been discovered and that all six Pakistan Army servicemen on board had accepted martyrdom. When it lost communication with air traffic control on Monday around 5:30 pm while conducting a flood relief mission in Lasbela, Balochistan, the Pakistan Army aviation chopper vanished (ATC).

PM Shehbaz Sharif said, "Will be eternally indebted to these sons of earth."

Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif expressed his profound sadness and grief following the news of the deaths of six military personnel.

PM Shehbaz described the deceased Lieutenant General Sarfraz Ali as "an exceptional professional, a dutiful and capable officer, highly honest and a good human being."

The grieving families of the six martyrs received PM Shehbaz's condolences.

When the aircraft crashed yesterday, Lieutenant General Sarfraz Ali was overseeing the flood relief efforts in Balochistan. Gen Sarfraz Ali, who was a Major-General at the time, was elevated to Lieutenant-General status in 2020. In 2021, he was assigned as the Corps Commander of the XII Corps, popularly known as the Southern Command, following his elevation.

Imran Khan, the former prime minister, interviewed General Sarfraz in October of last year as one of the candidates for the position of director general Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

He was the inspector general of the Frontier Corps in South Balochistan before being posted to the Quetta Corps. Additionally, he had held the position of defence attaché at the Pakistani embassy in the US (US).

Earlier in the day, it was reported that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern over the then-missing Pakistan Army aviation helicopter during his telephonic conversation with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa.