BHUBANESWAR: A Pilot-less Target Aircraft (PTA) flown from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) off Odisha coast, as part of its regular sortie, crash-landed on the field of a villager in Odisha's Balasore district on Friday.
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) dubbed as ‘Lakshya’ was flight tested by the Indian Air Force (IAF) from the test range at about 11.30 am. Though it was supposed to land on the sea beach, it fell on the field of Bhaskar Jena of Haldisola village under Baliapal block.
Sources said a major mishap was averted as there was no movement of people on the field at the time of incident. It would have been disastrous had the aircraft fallen on human habitation.
Locals, who mistook it as a missile, were scared as the aircraft fell with a huge noise. Jena said initially he thought a rocket exploded and fell down. But much to his surprise, it was a small aircraft. “Thank God, it did not fall on any house or crowded place,” said Jena.
As the news spread, hundreds of onlookers thronged the place to have a glimpse of the aircraft. Many were seen taking selfies with the UAV. The villagers later informed the police and defence officials. A team of four air force officials reached there in a helicopter and recovered the aircraft.
Though the reason behind the crash-landing was not known, a defence official said, the target aircraft has been retrieved and it can be used for further trials. “It was a perfect recovery. Everything has worked perfectly after a perfect mission. It has been brought back to ITR safely and can fly again,” he said.
While the length of the UAV was about 7.1 feet, it has maximum take-off weight of 705 kg. It flies at a speed of Mach 7 and can travel a distance of nearly 150 km.
Usually, a PTA, which is a reusable aerial target and remote-controlled from ground, flies 30 to 35 minutes on air and after making three to four laps, it drops down with the help of a parachute. It is later retrieved by helicopter and reused.
The PTA, which is already inducted into the IAF in 2000, is also used for evaluation and development trials of surface-to-air and air-to-air weapon systems.