A MiG-29 fighter jet crashed into a field near Uttar Pradesh’s Agra during a routine training sortie following a technical glitch, the Indian Air Force and defence officials said.
The pilot ejected himself to safety at the time of the crash. The plane had taken off from Adampur in Punjab and was on its way to Agra for an exercise when the incident happened.
“A MiG-29 aircraft of the IAF crashed near Agra during a routine training sortie today, after encountering a system malfunction. The pilot manoeuvred the aircraft to ensure no damage to life or property on the ground, before ejecting safely. An inquiry has been ordered by the IAF to ascertain the cause of the accident, the Air Force said in a statement.
Visuals from the site showed plumes of smoke emanating from the crashed jet and some people gathering at the site.
A court of inquiry will be ordered into the crash, officials said.
More details are awaited.
This is not the first time that a MiG-29 fighter jet has crashed and burst into flames. On September 2, a MiG-29 fighter jet crashed in Rajasthan’s Barmer after it developed a technical snag. The pilot managed to safely eject before the crash.
The fighter jet, which was on a training mission from an Air Force base in the Barmer sector, met with a snag and burst into flames soon after it crashed into a field near Uttarlai in Barmer, which was not populated.