Another Indian MiG-21 crashes near Rajasthan

NEW DELHI – A MiG-21 fighter jet of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed near Suratgarh, Rajasthan on Tuesday evening.

The IAF said the aircraft experienced a technical fault during a training maneuver in the western sector.

The pilot ejected the jet while the Court of Inquiry has been ordered to probe the accident, the statement added.

During a training sortie in the western sector, a MiG-21 Bison aircraft experienced a major technical malfunction this evening. The pilot ejected safely at about 2015 hrs. There is no loss of life. An Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident.

— Indian Air Force (@IAF_MCC) January 5, 2021

Earlier in September 2019, another Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-21 crashed near the Gwalior Air Force Base in Madhya Pradesh.

According to a report, more than 170 Indian pilots and 40 civilians have been killed in air crashes since 1970.

Most of the crashes had occurred to MiG-21 jets, which have had 210 accidents from 1963-2015.

MiG-21 is also the aircraft shot down by the Pakistan Air Force in February 2019, which led to the capture of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.