Jaipur/New Delhi: A Mirage 2000 fighter plane
of the Indian Air Force (IAF) today crashed near a village in
Rajasthan`s Sawai Madhopur district, soon after taking off
from an airbase in Gwalior, in a second mishap involving the
aircraft type in 11 days.
The pilot managed to eject safely, IAF officials said.
This is the second crash involving a Mirage-2000 aircraft
since February 24.
"The crash took place 100 kilometres south-west of Jaipur
near Baman Baas village in Sawai Madhopur district. Soon after
taking off from Gwalior, the plane crashed at 1245 hours. The
pilot managed to bail out safely," the officials said.
IAF and Army teams have reached the site of the accident
and the pilot is being attended to for his injuries, they
said, adding that the aircraft was on a routine sortie.
A court of inquiry (CoI) has been ordered to ascertain
the reason for the crash.
Superintendent of Police, Sawai Madhopur, Anshuman Singh
said a police party had been dispatched to the crash spot
which was located in a hilly area.
This is the third crash involving an IAF aircraft this
year. A Kiran MK II trainer plane had crashed in Chennai on
January 30.
The second crash involving a Mirage-2000 aircraft took
place on February 24 near Bhind in Madhya Pradesh.
The aircraft was being flown by Air Marshal Anil Chopra
and Wing Commander Ram Kumar who had got airborne from Gwalior
airbase for a routine flying sortie at 1201 hours. Within five
minutes of taking off, the plane developed a technical snag
and crashed in a forested area.
PTI
