Soldier Thomas Cherian's remains returned to Kerala 56 years after tragic plane crash

Thiruvananthapuram | The mortal remains of soldier Thomas Cherian, who died in a plane crash in 1968, were received at Air Force Station Shangumugham here on Thursday with full military honours.

The remains of Cherian, a resident of Kerala's Pathanamthitta district, were recovered 56 years after an ill-fated aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed over the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh.

His remains were among the four recovered through a search mission, the Army has said.

Pangode Military Station Commander, the Station Commander of Air Force Station Shangumugham, the deceased soldier's next of kin, and central and state dignitaries laid wreaths on the mortal remains.

Union Minister Suresh Gopi, Kerala Health Minister Veena George, military officials including Brigadier Salil MP and Group Captain TN Manikandan, Thiruvananthapuram district collector Anu Kumari and other military officials from the Army and Air Force, along with the relatives of the deceased soldier, including his brother Thomas Thomas, paid homage to the departed soul.

The mortal remains of the deceased soldier are kept in the Military Hospital at Pangode and will be taken to his hometown, Elanthoor, Pathanamthitta, on Friday for his last rites with full military honours.

The twin-engine turboprop transport aircraft AN-12, carrying 102 people, had gone missing on February 7, 1968, while flying from Chandigarh to Leh.

For decades, the wreckage and remains of the victims remained lost in the icy terrain.