An Indian Air Force also confirmed that a court of inquiry has been instituted to ascertain the reason behind the crash
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said that a Court of Inquiry (CoI) has been ordered to ascertain the reasons behind the crash of MiG-21 trainer aircraft near Gwalior on Wednesday. The Defence Minister also called on the Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa to enquire about the condition of the two pilots — one of them a main planner of the February Balakot airstrike — onboard the ill-fated aircraft. They managed to eject successfully from the cockpit of the MiG-21 as it crashed in Gwalior soon after taking off from the Maharajpur airbase there at around 10 am.
An Indian Air Force (IAF) also confirmed that a court of inquiry (CoI) has been instituted to ascertain the reason behind the crash.
"Both pilots, a Squadron Leader and a Group Captain, ejected safely and were picked up by a rescue helicopter. The aircraft was a Type-69 twin-seated trainer aircraft," the IAF said in a statement.
Group Captain YS Negi was the main pilot, previously recognised by the government and awarded the Yudh Sewa Medal for his stellar role in the planning and executing the Balakot strikes on February 26 on a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist camp. At the time of the aerial strikes, he was posted at the Western Air Command in New Delhi.Negi has also commanded the 51 Squadron earlier. Wing Commander Abhinandan was also part of this Squadron.
The crashed MiG-21 was a part of the IAF Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE) school, also known as the Top Gun school of the force.
Almost three weeks ago, on September 2, Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa along with Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman had flown another MiG-21 Type 69 trainer in Pathankot, Punjab. This sortie was the last one by ACM Dhanoa before his retirement on September 30, 2019.
The force has lost at least 10 aircraft in 2019 till September 25. While an IAF Jaguar had crashed on January 28, just a few days later, on February 1, a Mirage 2000 came down in Bengaluru in which both the pilots lost their lives.
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