Russian Paraglider Alexey Trapped in 100-Metre Power Lines Sparks Emergency Himachal Rescue

A solo cross-country flight out of Kangra's famous ridge ended in a high-voltage nightmare on Monday.

Russian paraglider pilot Alexey was left suspended roughly 100 metres above the ground near Tandu in Himachal Pradesh's Mandi district after his canopy snarled in high-tension electricity lines. The snag threatened immediate disaster. Yet the lines held, trapping the pilot in mid-air and setting off an emergency rescue mission across the rugged valley terrain.

Alexey had launched his glider earlier in the day from Bir Billing, the internationally renowned paragliding hub in neighboring Kangra district. During his flight across the Mandi corridor, crosswinds and descent trajectory forced his wing into the live transmission grid. Suspended dozens of metres up, the Russian national pulled out his mobile phone, snapped photographs of the entanglement, and pinged his exact GPS coordinates directly to the Bir Billing Paragliding Association. The association immediately escalated the coordinates to administrative authorities in Mandi.

Mid-Air Snag Near Tandu

Local authorities received the distress alert at approximately 2:30 pm, setting off a rapid multi-agency mobilization.

"Multiple rescue teams, along with personnel from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), were deployed immediately to bring the pilot down safely," confirmed Mandi Deputy Commissioner Apoorva Devgan.

The mechanical danger of the rescue remains severe. High-voltage wires present a lethal electrocution risk and precarious load limits, preventing standard rope teams from simply pulling the harness free. Ground crews moved quickly to mitigate a catastrophic fall, blanketing the drop zone directly beneath the dangling pilot with heavy mattresses and industrial safety nets.

Multi-Agency Extraction on the Ground

Emergency personnel moved hydraulic machinery and high-reach equipment into the clearing beneath the lines to build an access pathway directly toward the stranded pilot.

The Operational Stakes: Mountain air currents and high-tension utility corridors regularly present hazardous glide paths along the Kangra-Mandi transit route, where thermal flying attracts hundreds of foreign aviators every season. Entanglements at this altitude demand total power isolation across the local grid and precision bucket crane maneuvering to avert a sudden canopy failure.

SDRF specialists and district rescue units remain on site near Tandu, coordinating specialized lifting machinery to secure Alexey and lower him to safety before darkness sets in across the valley.