Yusuffali visits couple who helped him after April’s chopper crash
KOCHI: Business tycoon and Lulu Group chairman Yusuffali M A on Sunday visited the house of a couple who had rushed to rescue him and fellow passengers when his helicopter crashlanded in Kochi in April this year. He thanked them for their effort.
“I’m glad that I could keep my word and visit the family that came to my rescue. I had planned to meet them months ago after returning to Kochi. But Rajesh and his wife (Biji) had tested positive for Covid forcing me to postpone the visit. I’m happy to have spent some time with them,” Yusuffali said.
Amid heavy rain, on April 11, the helicopter in which Yusuffali was travelling crashlanded at a marshy land in Panangad after developing technical glitches. The helicopter also carried his wife and two other passengers, besides two pilots. Yusuffali was on his way to the Lakeshore Hospital then. Rajesh and Biji, who is a civil police officer at the Panangad station, provided primary care to all the passengers.
Yusuffali stayed at their house before a vehicle arrived to take him to the hospital. He had promised to visit the family. The Gulf-based businessman visited the couple with a handful of gifts and also promised Rajesh all support for the wedding of his cousin sister.
Pilot error caused accident Meanwhile, the preliminary investigation by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had found that a pilot error may have caused the emergency landing in a swamp. Yusuffali said the investigation is in its final stages. The final report from DGCA is yet to come, he said.