The crashed Mi-17 in Uttarakhand. Pakistanis are falsely claiming that the image is from Ladakh

New Delhi: Pakistanis are sharing a photograph of a crashed chopper on social media, claiming that an Mi-17 helicopter has crashed in Ladakh, where India and China are currently engaged in a tense stand-off at the Line of Actual Control.

“Indian MI 17 Helicopter has crashed in Ladakh. I’m sure that they have crossed the line,” said a user named Engin Altan Duzyatan on Twitter.

Indian MI 17 Helicopter has crashed in Ladakh.
I'm sure that they have crossed the line pic.twitter.com/YZg3fYNUxB
— Engin Altan Duzyatan (@eadksk__0) September 13, 2020

Mubasher Lucman, a Pakistani journalist, tweeted: “Indians please check is this your M17 crashed in Ladakh? We will keep you posted on any developments.” The post from his verified Twitter handle has been shared over 1,000 times.

Indians please check is this your M 17 crashed in Laddakh? We will keep you posted of any developments pic.twitter.com/Oc8LJVlGYp
— Mubasher Lucman (@mubasherlucman) September 13, 2020

Many others also posted tweets with the same image and caption.

Indians please check is this your M 17 crashed in Laddakh? We will keep you posted of any developments pic.twitter.com/xbsYL2okK7
— Muhammad Asif (@Asif_Maxwell95) September 13, 2020

Indians please check is this your M 17 crashed in Laddakh? We will keep you posted of any developments pic.twitter.com/nRxEsSXa5j
— پینڈو (@producer434) September 13, 2020

A user named Muhammed Aslam wrote, “Indians M-17 crashed in Ladakh”.

Indians M-17 crashed in Laddakh

— Muhammad Aslam (@MAslam_K) September 13, 2020

Irmak Idoya, whose handle says he is from Nepal, shared the photo and wrote, “Today, Indian MI 17 Helicopter has crashed in Ladakh”.

Today, Indian MI 17 Helicopter has crashed in Ladakh. pic.twitter.com/p4dQSCwZ8u
— Irmak Idoya इरमक ईड्या (@Irmaknepal) September 13, 2020

Idoya has made false claims on social media about Indian aircraft crashes in the past too. In July, he had claimed that an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft was shot down after it crossed the border to conduct airstrikes in Nepalese territory.

The image of the crashed Mi-17 has gone viral on Facebook too, but mostly carrying screenshots of the tweets.

Indians please check is this your M 17 crashed in Laddakh? We will keep you posted of any developments
Abdullah CH यांनी वर पोस्ट केले रविवार, १३ सप्टेंबर, २०२०
Peshawar News यांनी वर पोस्ट केले रविवार, १३ सप्टेंबर, २०२०
M Abrar Hussain यांनी वर पोस्ट केले रविवार, १३ सप्टेंबर, २०२०

Fact-Check

The image doing the rounds on social media is from April 2018, and is also not from Ladakh.

The Mi-17 helicopter, an IAF cargo aircraft, had caught fire while attempting to land near Kedarnath temple in Uttarakhand. It caught fire after it hit an iron girder.

One person died and three others had been injured in the crash.