Jaguar jet crashes in UP, pilot ejects safely

Lucknow, January 28

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An IAF Jaguar fighter jet crashed at Hetimpur village in Kushinagar district early on Monday soon after taking off on a routine mission from the Gorakhpur air base.

Wing Commander Rohit Katoch manoeuvred the jet away from thickly populated areas before himself ejecting safely. A court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain why the crash occurred. Witnesses said they were shocked to see the jet catching fire mid-air. They said the pilot, in all probability, was trying to steer it towards Choti Gandak river.

But when the danger became life-threatening, he put the jet on auto mode and ejected to safety even as the jet crashed into a vacant field barely 300 metres from thickly populated areas. — TNS