Three IAF officers sacked for accidental firing of Brahmos missile that landed in Pakistan

The Centre on Tuesday sacked three senior Indian Air Force (IAF) officers who were responsible for an accidental firing of a Brahmos missile that landed in Pakistan earlier this year, causing huge embarrassment to India which takes pride in the safety and security of its arsenal.

The officers, one with the rank of a Group Captain and two Wing Commanders, were found guilty following an official probe that the IAF launched soon after the accidental missile launch on March 9.

"These three officers have primarily been held responsible for the incident. Their services have been terminated by the central government with immediate effect. Termination orders have been served upon the officers on Aug 23," the IAF said in a statement.

"A Court of Inquiry set up to establish the facts of the case, including fixing responsibility for the incident, found that deviation from the Standard Operating Procedures by three officers led to the accidental firing,” it added.

The accidental launch happened from a place near Ambala around 7 pm on March 9 during an inspection procedure. The missile without any warhead flew for less than seven minutes before landing near Mian Chunnu city in Pakistan's Punjab.

Pakistani authorities claimed that the Pakistan Air Force tracked its 6.46-minute flight path, of which over 124 km — or 3.44 minutes — took place inside Pakistan.

Two days after the incident, a Defence Ministry spokesperson had stated that a "technical malfunction in the course of a routine maintenance" led to the accidental firing.

"The Government of India has taken a serious view and ordered a high-level Court of Inquiry. While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident," the ministry had stated.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, too, made a statement in both Houses of Parliament.

India’s official regret note didn’t deter Pakistan from raising the issue at the global arena, causing a big loss of face for New Delhi. Islamabad also demanded a joint enquiry, asserting that India must explain the measures and procedures in place to prevent accidental missile launches.

In Parliament, the minister described the incident as an “inadvertent release of a missile during inspection”. He stated that India attached the highest priority to the safety and security of its weapon systems and if any shortcomings were to be found, the same would be immediately rectified.

He also said a review of the standard operating procedures for operations, maintenance and inspections was being conducted in the wake of this incident.