An Indian Air Force (IAF) trainer aircraft HAL HJT-16, also known as Kiran, crashed on the outskirts of Chamarajanagar town in Karnataka on Thursday, officials said, adding the two pilots ejected before it hit the ground.
Officials said the pilots, identified as Tejpal and Bhumika, sustained injuries and were airlifted to Bengaluru for treatment.
A local police officer said that helicopters from Bengaluru’s HAL evacuated both pilots and they are undergoing treatment at the city’s Command hospital.
“Both of them landed around a half kilometre away from where the plane crashed,” police said.
“Tejpal complained of back pain and Bhumika suffered minor injuries. Both of them are not seriously injured. Rescue helicopters were deployed to evacuate them,” the officer said.
Somashekar, a resident of Bhogapura said he saw the flight in the air. “The plane came crashing down and landed around 500 meters from our panchayat building,” he said.
Meanwhile, the IAF has ordered a court of inquiry into the crash to ascertain the cause of the incident.
“A Kiran trainer aircraft of the IAF crashed near Chamrajnagar, Karnataka today, while on a routine training sortie. Both aircrews ejected safely. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident,” the tweet by IAF said.
{{/usCountry}}“A Kiran trainer aircraft of the IAF crashed near Chamrajnagar, Karnataka today, while on a routine training sortie. Both aircrews ejected safely. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident,” the tweet by IAF said.
{{/usCountry}}The process of replacing the ageing fleet of Kiran aircraft, which was first inducted in 1968, had begun in 2008 after IAF began inducting advanced Hawk Mk aircraft from the UK.
Even though the IAF operates 102 Hawk trainers, due to the lack of availability of aircraft, Kirans (around 78 of them) continue to be in service.