Dehradun, June 17 -- A team from Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) arrived in Uttarakhand's Rudraprayag district for an investigation into the chopper crash near Gaurikund that killed seven people, including its pilot and inspect the site on Sunday, an official said on Monday. The probe was initiated after a Bell 407 helicopter, operated by Aryan Aviation, crashed en route to Guptkashi from the Kedarnath shrine near Gaurikund on Sunday around 5.30am amid poor visibility in the region. It was the fifth helicopter accident since the Char Dham Yatra began on April 30 this year. Rahul Chaubey, Rudraprayag district tourism officer (DTO), who also serves as nodal officer for the chopper services in the district, said, "The AAIB officials arrived in Rudraprayag on Sunday evening to carry out the investigation of the chopper crash and inspect the crash site. The DGCA has already conveyed to the helicopter operators to be extra cautious and not operate in bad weather." Meanwhile, the police handed over the bodies of the victims to their families after post mortem examination. The victims included pilot Rajveer Singh Chauhan, 35, a former army officer from Jaipur; a family of three from Maharashtra - Rajkumar Suresh Jaiswal, 41, his wife Shradha, 35, and their daughter Kashi, 2; two passengers from Uttar Pradesh, Vinod Devi, 66, and her granddaughter Tusti Singh, 19; and temple committee member Vikram Singh Rawat, 46. Circle officer, Rudraprayag, Prabodh Ghildiyal said, "We have handed over the bodies of the victims to their families after post mortem examination." The police have also registered against an FIR against two officials of Aryan Aviation Pvt Limited. Kaushik Pathak, accountable manager of the company, and Vikas Tomar, manager of the company, were booked under section 105 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and relevant sections of the Aircraft Act on the complaint of revenue sub inspector Rajiv Nakholia. Nakholia in his complaint said that the chopper operated despite bad weather conditions in violation of standard operating procedure issued by Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority. Circle officer Guptkashi Vikas Pundir said, "We have started our investigation against the accused. No arrest has been made yet." After the Sunday's crash, the state government suspended the operations of Aryan Aviation with immediate effect, and also announced the a halt on helicopter operations in the region "as a safety precaution". "During this period, the experience of all pilots and Heli operators operating in high Himalayan regions will be thoroughly assessed. The services will only resume following a comprehensive review meeting with all heli operators", chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said. The fifth chopper accident in six weeks on the Char Dham route has raised serious concerns over helicopter operations, with experts and pilots holding both the operators and the state government accountable. A former pilot on condition of anonymity said poor maintenance of choppers and pilot errors could also be reasons for such incidents. "With such a high frequency of flights, are the helicopters being properly maintained? In the recent crash landing on the highway, a maintenance issue was very likely involved. Maintenance sometimes gets neglected," he added. "It's also possible that some pilots lack adequate experience in this specific terrain, which may lead to delayed or inappropriate decision-making during emergencies," he said. Captain Sandeep Soti, former chief of flight safety for the Uttarakhand government and a veteran pilot with over two decades of experience flying in high-altitude areas, said, "The Kedarnath valley is undoubtedly narrow, and the weather changes rapidly there. The Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) oversees operations, while the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) regulates them through standard operating procedures. Yet, five incidents have occurred in a short span of time...something is seriously wrong. We can't keep blaming the weather. It's quite possible that SOPs are being flouted, and they need to be strengthened. There must be a thorough review to ensure operational safety."...