Rajasthan: Two pilots were killed after an Indian Air Force fighter aircraft crashed in Barmer area of Rajasthan on Thursday night.
“At 9:10 pm this evening, an IAF MiG 21 trainer aircraft met with an accident in the western sector during a training sortie. Both pilots sustained fatal injuries. IAF deeply regrets the loss of lives and stands firmly with the bereaved families,” IAF said in a tweet.
“A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident,” the tweet mentioned.
The twin-seater MiG 21 trainer aircraft was airborne for a training sortie from Barmer’s Utarlai air base on Thursday evening, Indian Express reported.
Earlier, the Rajasthan police had said the impact of the crash was such that they could not make out how many people were in the plane.
Barmer Deputy SP Jaggu Ram, who had reached the spot, said locals informed the police about the crash around 9 pm.
“Locals reported a fireball crashing into the ground, killing the pilots. The impact was such that from the remains, we can’t tell whether there were two pilots or one. The debris is spread over a kilometre,” Ram said.
The aircraft crashed in Isramon ka Tala village under Baytu police station limits. The village is about 37 kilometres north of district headquarters.
“Locals have gathered. We are trying to control the crowd. The SHO of Baytu police station and others have reached the spot,” the report said quoting Deputy SP as saying.
No loss of life among locals was reported, as per the Deputy SP. Locals shared several videos of the burning remains of the aircraft — in one of the videos, a local is heard saying that the impact left a crater about 15 feet deep.
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