Fighter aircraft crashes near Panchkula
A Jaguar fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in a hilly forest area near Raipur Rani on Friday. The pilot ejected safely and was later evacuated by the IAF personnel in a helicopter.
The aircraft, which took off from the Ambala airbase on a routine training sortie, crashed due to system malfunction. Local villagers gathered at the spot and helped the pilot free himself from his parachute harness. Videos and photographs of the site emerged soon after the crash, showing the parachute entangled over tree tops and smouldering parts of the aircraft scattered in the area.
“A Jaguar aircraft of the IAF crashed at Ambala during a routine training sortie today, after encountering system malfunction. The pilot manoeuvered the aircraft away from any habitation on ground, before ejecting safely. An inquiry has been ordered by the IAF to ascertain the cause of the accident,” a statement by the IAF said.
The Ambala airbase houses squadrons of Jaguar and the newly inducted Rafale aircraft, besides other ancillary units. It is the IAF’s oldest airbase. There have been incidents involving the Jaguar in the past. Sources in the IAF said the fleet had suffered over 50 major and minor incidents in its 45-year service, some of which resulted in fatalities.
The IAF operates around 120 twin-engine Jaguars with six squadrons, No. 5, 6, 14, 16, 27 and 224, at Ambala, Jamnagar and Gorakhpur. These squadrons are a crucial element of IAF strike capability and tactical reconnaissance. Some aircraft have been modified for the maritime role with anti-ship missiles.
In 1979, 40 aircraft were imported from the UK followed by licence manufacture of 150 aircraft by state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. Aircraft started rolling off the assembly lines as late as 2007. India is the sole country to have Jaguars in service, while other users — France, UK, Oman, Nigeria and Ecuador — have retired these aircraft.
A few years ago, the IAF began re-equipping the Jaguars with the DARIN-III advanced navigation and attack avionics suite, and earlier this year, initiated another project to re-equip the fleet with new generation close combat air-to-air missiles, transport platforms as well as cruise missiles and UAVs.
Recently, India procured 31 decommissioned Jaguar airframes from France and two each from the UK and Oman, along with a large quantity of aero-spares to ensure serviceability of its fleet.
