The accident of their twin-seater Mig-21 trainer aircraft in Barmer, RajasthanĀ on Thursday night claimed the lives of two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots. According to the IAF, the tragedy occurred at around 9:10 p.m. while the aircraft was on a sortie from the Utarlai air base, and both of the pilots perished.
The incident once again brought attention to the IAF’s ageing fleet of Mig-21 aircraft, which are of Soviet vintage and have been in approximately 200 accidents since they were initially introduced in the early 1960s.
How did incident happen :
The Indian Air Force announced in a statement that a twin-seater Mig-21 trainer aircraft took out for a training sortie from Utarlai air base in Rajasthan this evening. “Near Barmer, the aircraft had an accident at about 9:10 p.m. Injury to both pilots resulted in death. The IAF expresses its sincere condolences to the departed families and stands strongly with them”.
A court of inquiry has been mandated, according to the IAF, to determine what caused the tragedy. After the tragedy, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari talked with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Singh conveyed his sorrow for the passing of the two pilots in a tweet. Singh remarked.
Ā “Deeply saddened by the deaths of two Air Fighters owing to an IAF Mig-21 training aircraft accident near Barmer in Rajasthan”. Chief Marshal also stated that, “We shall never forget the contribution they made to the country. In this hour of mourning, my condolences are with the grieving families”.
The two pilots’ names have not yet been released by the IAF. For a very long time, the MiG-21s served as the IAF’s mainstay. The plane, however, has a terrible safety record.
42 defence personnel were died in incidents involving aeroplanes and coptersĀ of the three services in the previous five years, stated Ajay Bhat, StateĀ Minister in Charge for DefenceĀ in March while speaking in the Rajya Sabha. In the past five years, there have been 45 air incidents, of which 29 involve IAF platforms.
image credit : shutterstock
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