Indian fighter jet crashes near Goa
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A fighter jet of the Indian Navy crashed on Saturday near Goa, reported Indian media.
The aircraft, a MIG-29k, crashed shortly after take-off. Both pilots ejected and a search and rescue operation is underway.
The Indian armed forces suffer from chronic spare shortages and lax aircraft maintenance standards.
The MiG-29K is an aircraft carrier version of the MiG-29. The aircraft which crashed today was deployed at Indian Navy Air Station Hansa Dabolim and deputed for aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
According to Indian Navy, the trainer aircraft crashed as it suffered an engine fire. Indian media, however claimed that it was due to a probable bird strike.
In September, an Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-21 crashed near the Gwalior Air Force Base in Madhya Pradesh.
According to another Indian media report, more than 170 Indian pilots and 40 civilians have been killed in air crashes since 1970.
All these crashes involved fighter planes and most were attributed to MiG-21 jets, which have had 210 accidents from 1963-2015.
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