Morena
Two Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30 and Mirage 2000 crashed in Morena, Tezzbuzz on Saturday. One pilot died in the incident. While two other pilots landed by parachute. However, both are injured and have been airlifted for treatment. Both the planes had taken off from the Gwalior airbase in Tezzbuzz. The aircraft were on routine operational flying training mission. The debris of the plane fell in Pahargarh of Morena and Bharatpur of Rajasthan.
The eyewitnesses of the accident told that they heard the sound of explosion in the sky. After this, when he came out, he saw that a ball of fire was going to fall on the ground from a great height. Meanwhile, two people were seen descending from the parachute in the dense forest near the village. Later it was learned that both were pilots and got injured after falling in the bush in the forest. After this people reached there and pulled out both the pilots from the bush. After some time he was airlifted by an Air Force helicopter.
Villagers told that both the planes had collided above the forest of Pahargarh in Morena. During this, a plane caught fire with an explosion. Eyewitnesses said that the debris of both the planes was scattered in an area of 500-800 meters about four kilometers from Pahargarh and caught fire. The people around tried to extinguish the fire in both the planes by pouring mud. After the incident, 1500 people from about 15 villages reached the spot.
Sarpanch said – Pilots were seen descending from the parachute in the forest
Pahargarh sarpanch Shailendra Shakya told that he was standing with the people when the incident happened. A loud bang was heard in the sky. After this, balls like fire were seen coming down. Two parachutes were landing towards the jungle. Waited 20 minutes for both to get down. Both the parachutes fell in the bushes. Reached the spot and pulled out both the pilots from the bushes and made them lie on the ground. In some time, a helicopter of the Indian Air Force arrived and took both the pilots to Gwalior.
Smoke was seen five kilometers away, then ran away and extinguished the fire
Veeru, a resident of Pahargarh, told that he was near the spot at around 10.30 am. He saw an aircraft engulfed in flames. Smoke was visible at a place about 5 kilometers away. When he reached the spot, he saw that the wreckage of the plane was burning there. Tried to extinguish it with clay. The sarpanch informed the police and fire brigade about the incident.
Wing Commander Hanumant Rao Sarathi lost his life in the accident.
In this case, defense experts said that it is possible that there was an air collision between the Russian-designed Sukhoi-30 MKI jet and the French Mirage-2000. Officials said that the pilot of Miraj has been identified as Wing Commander Hanumant Rao Sarathi. The Mirage-2000 is a single-seater jet, it was being flown by Wing Commander Sarathi. He has lost his life.
He said that a high-level inquiry has been ordered into the accident. During this, two pilots of Sukhoi aircraft were injured, they have been taken to the military hospital. Officials said that with the recovery of the flight data recorders of both the planes, the cause of the accident would be ascertained.
Defense Minister expressed grief over the death of Wing Commander
The Indian Air Force said in a statement that two fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed near Gwalior on Saturday morning. The aircraft were on a routine operational flight training mission. An inquiry has been ordered to find out the cause of the accident. Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhary informed Defense Minister Rajnath Singh about the accident.
The Defense Minister tweeted that he was deeply saddened by the demise of brave warrior Wing Commander Hanumant Rao Sarathi, who had fallen victim to an accident near Gwalior. My deepest condolences to his bereaved family. We stand with his family in this difficult time.
What did aviation historians say about the accident?
Aviation historian Anchit Gupta tweeted that mid-air collisions are not uncommon. At least 64 aircraft and 39 pilots have been lost in such accidents in the last more than 70 years in India. He said the country lost 11 MiG-21 aircraft in MAC, while the number of Hunter and Jaguar aircraft are eight and five respectively.
How many times have plane crashes happened in the country
Two Indian Air Force pilots lost their lives in July last year when their two-seater MiG-21 trainer aircraft crashed during a training sortie near Barmer in Rajasthan. In March last year, Minister of State for Defense Ajay Bhatt The Rajya Sabha was told that in the last five years, 42 defense personnel were killed in accidents involving aircraft and helicopters of the three services. In October last year, a weapon system integrated version of an Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) of the Indian Army crashed near Tuting in Arunachal Pradesh. Another ALH-WSI crashed into the massive Ranjit Sagar reservoir near Pathankot on 3 August 2021, killing two army pilots. In October 2019, the then Northern Command chief Lt Gen Ranbir Singh and other senior officers A Dhruv helicopter of the Indian Army was going to crash in Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir.
15 military helicopter accidents between March 2017 and December 2021
As per official records, 31 lives were lost in accidents involving 15 military helicopters between March 2017 and December 2021, including four ALHs, four Cheetahs, two ALHs (WSI), three Mi-17V5, one Mi-17 and one Chetak was involved. On December 8, 2021, 14 people lost their lives in an accident near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu. The then Chief of Defense Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and 12 armed forces personnel were killed in the accident. Earlier, two Hawk aircraft of Indian Air Force’s aerobatic team Surya Kiran crashed in Bengaluru after a mid-air collision. This incident happened four years ago.
