Inclement weather was the main reason for the helicopter crash that killed former chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, a two-member expert committee appointed by the Andhra Pradesh government to probe into the incident said on Thursday.
"There are other factors as well that led to the crash which we have explained in our report. But there was no failure of the helicopter (Bell-430) engine. Similarly, the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) contained no clues about the alleged conspiracy theory in the crash," committee members H S Khola and M R Reddy told newpersons.
Inclement weather was the main reason for the crash in dense jungles of Nalamalla hills on September two last year, said the report submitted to Chief Minister K Rosaiah on Thursday.
"The conspiracy angle is being probed by the CBI," they said, adding that they recommended a system where crucial decisions related to VIP flights could be decided by more than one person or agency. "This system is being followed for the Prime Minister. As a matter of precaution, we recommended something more." Earlier on January 20, a report by a four-member DGCA inquiry committee said the crash was caused by pilots' error who lost the chopper's control and were engrossed for vital six minutes trying to locate a flight manual.
Reddy, his special secretary P Subramaniam, Chief Security Officer ASC Weseley, and the two pilots Group Captain S K Bhatia and Captain M S Reddy, were killed when the Bell 430 helicopter of the state government went down in the jungles in bad weather.
