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Noida: A heart-wrenching incident unfolded from Himachal Pradesh, where a woman paraglider from Noida in Uttar Pradesh met with a fatal accident soon after taking off from Bir-Billing hills in Kangra district. The victim has been identified as 56-year-old Ritu Chopra, who tragically lost her life in the accident that occurred on Sunday. officials indicated that a sudden change in wind currents might have been a contributing factor to the accident.
According to officials aware of the development, victim Ritu Chopra was an experienced pilot and had embarked on a solo flight. Wife of retired Indian Air Force officer Wing Commander Ashutosh Chandera Chopra, Ritu was a resident of Gautam Budh Nagar, Noida.
The occurrence occurred in the picturesque Bir-Billing hills of Kangra, where Ritu’s paraglider failed, leading to the fatal accident. Upon realizing Ritu’s disappearance, her husband raised an alarm, prompting a search operation. She was swiftly located and transported to a nearby hospital. Tragically, despite efforts, she was declared dead upon arrival by the attending medical professionals.
According to reports citing local paragliding associations, Ritu Chopra was an experienced pilot with nine years of flying experience, having undertaken numerous solo flights.
Her husband, narrating the incident, stated, “We were both in the air when an unexpected strong gust of wind hit. While I managed to navigate through the turbulence, Ritu’s glider collapsed, causing her to plummet onto a mountainside. We were flying at an altitude of around 9000 feet.”
This tragic incident isn’t the first paragliding accident to occur at Bir-Billing. In a distressing turn of events last year, two foreign pilots, including one Russian and one Polish, lost their lives within a week during the Cross Country Pre-World Championship.
