PANAJI:An Indian Naval fighter aircraft today crashed off Goa coast, killing the pilot.
"The Indian naval 'Sea Harrier' aircraft, which was on a routine exercise mission, crashed at about 1157 hours," a naval spokesman told PTI here.
The single-seater aircraft crashed in the Arabian sea 15 miles away from the shore.
"Lieutenant Commander Saurav Saxena, the pilot of the aircraft lost his life in the incident," the spokesman added.
Navy officials in Goa said the aircraft wreckage has been spotted and the cause of the mishap would be known once the flight data recorder is recovered.
This crash is the second Naval air accident this year, the previous one involving a Kamov 28 helicopter in March 2009. The last Sea Harrier accident was reported in December 2007 off Goa, in which the pilot had bailed out safely.
The Navy is now just left with 10 Sea Harriers of the over 20 it had bought in mid-1980s. These aircraft are currently operated by the Navy from its lone aircraft carrier INS Viraat and from shore-based air bases.
The Navy had upgraded the aircraft recently to extend its service life by another five years in view of the delays in the DRDO and HAL coming out with the Naval version of the Light Combat Aircraft.
The Navy plans to replace the Sea Harriers with MiG 29K, which were procured from Russia along with the Aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov in 2004.