With quick presence of mind, pilots eject safely as Navy’s MiG 29K fighter jet crashes in Goa

Panjim, November 16: In an unfortunate incident, a MiG 29K fighter jet of the Indian Navy, which was on a training mission, crashed shortly after taking off in Goa on Saturday. The Indian Navy confirmed that the aircraft being flown by trainee pilots landed in an open area and with a quick presence of mind, the pilots ejected safely.

 

Informing about the same on twitter, the Indian Navy posted, “During a training mission, after take-off from INS HANSA at Dabolim a Mig 29k trainer aircraft suffered an engine fire. The pilots Capt. M Sheokhand and Lt Cdr Deepak Yadav ejected safely (sic).”

The cause of the engine failure was not immediately known but some reports claimed it was on account of a bird hit. A MiG 29K fighter jet of the Indian Navy crashed shortly after taking off in Goa. Eyewitnesses reported seeing a huge plume of smoke as well as two parachutes descending after the crash.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in a tweet said, “Spoke to the pilots, Capt Mrigank and Deepak Yadav of the MiG-29K which crashed after the take-off from Goa today. It is a matter of great satisfaction that they managed to eject in time and both of them are safe. I pray for their good health and well-being.”

The pilots were initially cared for by local residents after they landed in a residential area and were reported safe and conscious. The MiG 29K is the aircraft carrier version of the MiG 29 stationed at INS Hansa Dabolim and designated for Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya.