June 27, 2002	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 15, 1423

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NEW DELHI, June 26: An Indian fighter jet crashed into a paddy field on Wednesday in northern India, an Air Force spokesman said.

The MiG fighter plane was on a routine sortie in the northern Indian state of Punjab when it crashed at 7.30 a.m, the spokesman said.

The pilot of the aircraft bailed out to safety and, according to police officials, suffered only minor injuries.

The crash comes three weeks after a MIG aircraft crashed in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir.

In May, an Air Force MIG-21 plummeted into a bank near Jalandhar, Punjab, killing eight civilians and injuring 25.—dpa