A MiG-21 aircraft of the Indian Air Force on Friday crashed in Rajasthan's Barmer district, with the pilot ejecting safely.
“The aircraft took off from the Uttarlai Airbase in the western sector and was on a routine sortie.The plane crashed near Sodiyar village at 9 am,” Defence spokesperson S D Goswami said. It crashed 40 km off Barmer. A rescue mission was immediately launched from Jodhpur airbase, he added.
This is the second incident after nearly six months when an upgraded MiG-21 ‘Bison’ aircraft of the Indian Air Force had crashed after taking off from Naliya Airbase in Gujarat, last November. In the last three years, the Indian Air Force has lost 29 fighter planes including 12 MiG 21s in crashes in which six pilots lost their lives.
The aircraft lost in the crashes were 12 MiG 21s, eight MiG 27s, four Su-30MKis, two each Jaguars and Mirage 200 and one MiG 29. In these accidents, a total of six pilots and six civilians have lost their lives. Atleast 39 civilian properties were damaged, according to the Defence Minister AK Antony who was recently asked a question in the Parliament.
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