2 pilots killed as Soviet-era fighter jet crashes in India

Published July 29, 2022
Debris of an MiG-21 aircraft after it crashed in India’s Rajasthan on Thursday night. — Photo courtesy Scroll.in
Debris of an MiG-21 aircraft after it crashed in India’s Rajasthan on Thursday night. — Photo courtesy Scroll.in

Two pilots have been killed in India after a Soviet-era fighter jet crashed during a training sortie, the air force said, heightening safety concerns after a string of incidents involving the aircraft.

The MiG-21 came down on Thursday night in the desert of western Rajasthan state near the city of Barmer, the defence ministry said.

The crash was the sixth MiG-21 aircraft to have gone down since January last year, with five pilots killed.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) said the training aircraft “met with an accident” and said an investigation was ordered to determine the cause of the crash.

“IAF deeply regrets the loss of lives and stands firmly with the bereaved families,” the air force tweeted.

Local media footage showed flaming wreckage spread over a large area.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said he was “deeply anguished” by the loss of the two pilots in the crash.

“Their service to the nation will never be forgotten,” Singh said on Twitter.

MiG-21 jets first entered Indian service in the 1960s and for decades served as the backbone of the country's air force.

Numerous crashes in the past few decades, however, have led to the planes being dubbed “flying coffins” because of their poor safety record.

India is investing billions of dollars in modernising its air force, an initiative motivated by its decades-old rivalry with Pakistan and increased tensions with China.

Its military has bought dozens of French Rafale fighter jets, with deliveries starting in 2020.

Opinion

Editorial

A year later
Updated 08 Feb, 2025

A year later

A war of egos has been fought between a handful of individuals at the cost of the well-being of millions of ordinary Pakistanis.
Wheat decision
08 Feb, 2025

Wheat decision

THE federal decision to stop setting the minimum support price for wheat and cease the staple’s procurement...
Dhanmondi attack
08 Feb, 2025

Dhanmondi attack

HISTORY has shown that unless states deliver development and equal rights to all, disenfranchised people can target...
Depopulating Gaza
Updated 07 Feb, 2025

Depopulating Gaza

The least feasible "solution" is the Trumpian plan for Gaza’s ethnic cleansing and occupation, which is a non-starter.
‘Pause’ in US aid
07 Feb, 2025

‘Pause’ in US aid

THE impact of the Trump administration’s decision to ‘pause’ all US foreign aid programmes, especially those...
Mobilising opposition
07 Feb, 2025

Mobilising opposition

POLITICS makes strange bedfellows. There has not, for quite some time, been a guest list as intriguing as the one...