Bengaluru: Decorated air warrior Group Captain Varun Singh died at the Command Hospital in Bengaluru today, a week after he was seriously injured in the chopper crash near Coonoor that killed CDS Gen. Bipin Rawat, his wife and 11 Armed Forces personnel.

The Indian Air Force said the ‘braveheart’ Group Captain succumbed to his injuries this morning.

“IAF is deeply saddened to inform the passing away of braveheart Group Captain Varun Singh, who succumbed this morning to the injuries sustained in the helicopter accident on Dec. 8. IAF offers sincere condolences and stands firmly with the bereaved family,”  it said on Twitter.

Last Thursday, Group Captain Singh was shifted to the Command Hospital in Bengaluru from Wellington in Tamil Nadu.

The Group Captain was admitted to a hospital in Wellington with severe burn injuries on Wednesday following the crash.

Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and 11 armed forces personnel were killed in the Mi-17V5 helicopter crash near Coonoor.

Group Captain Singh, a decorated officer, was on board the Russian-made chopper as Liaison Officer for the visit of Gen. Rawat, India’s senior-most military officer, to the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington.

He was conferred the Shaurya Chakra in August for averting a possible mid-air accident after his Tejas light combat aircraft developed a major technical snag last year.

Cadaver skin sent from Victoria Hospital

Group Captain Varun Singh had received cadaver skin for grafting from the Skin Bank at Victoria Hospital. The Skin Bank had sent cadaver skin to the IAF Command Hospital on Sunday.

Sources at Victoria Hospital Skin Bank said that the Hospital received a request from the Command Hospital for skin on Sunday and the Skin Bank had immediately sent the required cadaver for skin grafting.

As it would take a few weeks to process and use the skin, they had thought of arranging more skin by that time from Skin Banks in Mumbai or Chennai, sources added.