5 IAF personnel killed in AN-32 crash

An Indian Air Force (IAF) AN-32 transport aircraft crashed on Saturday morning while landing at Jorhat Air Force Station, Assam. Five IAF personnel on board were killed. The co-pilot survived and is receiving treatment. The IAF ordered a court of inquiry to ascertain the cause of the mishap. According to initial reports, the AN-32 aircraft went down within the Air Force Station premises, triggering a fire after the crash.

The personnel who lost their lives in the crash were identified as Squadron Leader Prashant Singh, Flight Lieutenant Shubham Kumar, Sergeant Jitendra Sharma, Agniveervayu Khemaram Kumawat and Agniveervayu Danish Alam.

“An IAF An-32 aircraft met with an accident during a routine sortie today at approximately 1000h at Jorhat, Assam. Crash site management and initial inquiries are on at this time. IAF deeply regrets the loss of lives and stands firmly with the bereaved families in this time of grief,” a post from the IAF stated. Emergency response teams were immediately deployed to the site to control the blaze and assess the situation.

Popularly called old workhorse of the IAF, the Russian origin AN-32 is a rugged, twin-engine turboprop military transport aircraft that serves as the “workhorse” of the Indian Air Force. First built in the Soviet Union specifically for Indian requirements, the IAF operates a fleet of about 100 of these aircraft.

The AN-32 is designed to excel in extreme environments, functioning perfectly in high-altitude airfields and hot tropical climates. It can transport up to 7.5 tons of cargo, 50 passengers, or 42 paratroopers, and it is extensively used for supply drops in remote regions. The last AN-32 crash took place in 2019.

The latest accident comes a little over three months after another major IAF crash in Assam. On March 6, a Sukhoi-30MKI fighter aircraft on a training mission crashed in the hills of Karbi Anglong district after losing radar contact shortly after taking off from Jorhat. Both pilots on board, squadron leader Anuj and flight lieutenant Purvesh Duragkar, were killed in the crash.