Pilot killed in Jaguar crash got engaged 10 days ago, was 4th-generation serviceman
The IAF, in an earlier statement, said that the pilots faced a technical malfunction during the night mission and ejected from the aircraft, “avoiding harm to the airfield and the local population”.
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Siddarth Yadav had joined the IAF in 2017.The Indian Air Force pilot killed in the Jaguar fighter jet crash in Gujarat had got engaged to a Delhi woman on March 23, and their wedding was to be solemnised in the coming months, his family said.
The fighter aircraft, with two pilots on a night mission, had crashed at around 9.30 pm Wednesday shortly after taking off from Jamnagar Airfield, the IAF said. The aircraft crashed in open field in Suvarda village, 12 km from Jamnagar city, and caught fire. While one of the pilots sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment at a hospital, Flight Lieutenant Siddharth Yadav was killed in the crash.
A resident of Majra Bhalkhi village in Haryana’s Rewari district, Siddharth had joined the Indian Air Force in 2017. He came from a family of ex-servicemen — his father Sushil Kumar retired from the IAF while his grandfather Raghubir Singh as well as great-grandfather had served in the Indian Army.
Siddharth is survived by his father, mother Sushila Devi and younger sister Khushi.
The IAF, in an earlier statement, said that the pilots faced a technical malfunction during the night mission and ejected from the aircraft, “avoiding harm to the airfield and the local population”.
Wreckage at the site after a Jaguar fighter jet of the Indian Air Force crashed while on a training mission. (Photo: PTI)
“Siddharth sacrificed his life to save the lives of others. We are proud of him,” Sushil Kumar said.
“He was a brilliant student and joined the National Defence Academy (NDA) in January 2016. He got engaged on March 23,” the father said, adding “my grandfather and father had served in the Army while I was with the Indian Air Force. Siddharth was the fourth generation. He became a fighter pilot. My two nephews are also serving in the Indian Air Force”.
The IAF, in a statement, “deeply regretted the loss of life” and said “it stands firmly with the bereaved family”. It also ordered a Court of Inquiry to ascertain the cause of the accident.
The Jaguar fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed in an open field in Suvarda village of Jamnagar district late on Wednesday. (Express Photo: Chirag Chotaliya)
Meanwhile, the other pilot had suffered a fractured leg and is now in stable condition, as per a medical bulletin issued by the Guru Gobind Singh Government Hospital, Jamnnagar.
On March 7, the Jaguar fighter aircraft had crashed near Ambala in Haryana. The pilot ejected safely. The IAF had said that the aircraft had taken off from the Ambala Air Force base for a routine sortie.
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