BARMER: Two Indian Air Force pilots were killed when their twin-seater Mig-21 trainer aircraft met with an accident near Barmer in Rajasthan Friday night.
The IAF said the accident took place around 9:10 pm.
"A twin seater Mig-21 trainer aircraft of the IAF was airborne for a training sortie from Utarlai air base in Rajasthan this evening," it said.
"Around 9:10 pm, the aircraft met with an accident near Barmer. Both pilots sustained fatal injuries. The IAF deeply regrets the loss of lives and stands firmly with the bereaved families," the IAF said in a statement.
A court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari following the crash.
"Deeply anguished by the loss of two Air Warriors due to an accident of IAF's Mig-21 trainer aircraft near Barmer in Rajasthan," Singh said on Twitter.
"Their service to the nation will never be forgotten. My thoughts are with the bereaved families in this hour of sadness," he said.
The two Indian Air Force pilots killed in Thursday night's crash of a MiG-21 trainer aircraft in Rajasthan are Wing Commander M Rana and Flight Lieutenant Advitiya Bal. Wing Commander Rana hailed from Himachal Pradesh and Flight Lieutenant Bal from Jammu, an IAF official said while releasing the names to the media on Friday. The two pilots were killed when their twin-seater MiG-21 aircraft crashed during a training sortie near Barmer in the desert state.
The IAF said the aircraft was on a sortie from the Utarlai air base and the accident occurred around 9.10 pm. Air headquarters has already ordered a court of inquiry to ascertain the cause of the accident.
MiG-21s were the mainstay of the IAF for a long time. However, the aircraft has had a very poor safety record of late. In March, Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhat said in the Rajya Sabha that 42 defence personnel were killed in accidents involving aircraft and helicopters of the three services in the last five years. The total number of air accidents in the last five years was 45 out of which 29 involved IAF's platforms.