MIG-21 crashes in Patiala,pilot safe

An inquiry has been ordered into the crash.

An Indian Air Force MIG-21 fighter jet crashed near the Sambhu toll plaza,close to Rajpura town in Punjab’s Patiala district on Tuesday,but the pilot bailed out safely.

The fighter jet’s pilot ejected and landed in the fields near the site of the crash. Within minutes,he was whisked away by the local police authorities.

Superintendent of police,Rajpura,Manmohan Sharma said that the pilot was safe and the plane crashed in the fields near the national highway. There was no loss of life,he added.

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There was a lot of commotion in the area,around the crash site,as the jet caught fire after the crash. The crash site is merely a few hundred metres from the Surya group of institutions located on the highway.

Eyewitness Pavas,who studies in the Surya Group of Institutions located nearby,said: It was a horrific site. We were out for a break and suddenly heard a roaring sound. The jet was hurtling down and in seconds it crashed in the fields. The pilot of the plane was also seen landing with a parachute at a distance.

The plane had taken off from Ambala on a routine training sortie and crashed at 10.47 am,an IAF spokesman said in Delhi.

A court of inquiry has been ordered into the mishap.

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