An Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft crashed near Bibbar village in Kutch district on Friday afternoon. Though pilot of the Jaguar fighter plane ejected safely, fear was created among inhabitants of the small helmet Bibbar falling in Nakhatrana tehsil.
Defence PRO Wing Commander Abhishek Matiman said in a written statement that one Jaguar fighter aircraft of Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed nearly 30 kms north of Bhuj. “The pilot, who was airborne from Bhuj was on a flying training mission and has ejected safely. There is no reported damage on the ground. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to investigate into the cause of the accident,” said Matiman.
Meanwhile, sources in IAF said that in 2013, two MIG-29 fighter planes had crashed in June and July near Jamnagar air base in the State. In the last three years, at least 20 IAF fighter aircrafts had met with the accidents — due to technical as well as human errors, said the sources adding that these planes were eight MiG-21s (different versions), four Jaguars, three MiG-29s, two Sukhoi SU-30MKIs, two Mirage 2000s and one MiG 27 Ml.
As the plane grounded, people of Bibber and nearby areas rushed to the location after hearing enormous sound. “The wreckage of IAF plane is almost charred. The fall was so sharp that nearly 15 feet deep hole created on the ground,” said Gagubha Jadeja, vice-sarpanch of Bibber village. According to him as the plane hit the ground, a huge fire created and labourers working in the nearby farms douse it with water.