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Journalism of Courage
Two pilots of the Indian Air Force were killed when their MiG-21 trainer aircraft crashed at the airport on the outskirts of Srinagar last night.
A Defence spokesman said the aircraft was on a routine sortie when it crashed while landing in the IAF technical airfield area, some 10 km from here, at around 10.30 pm. Both the pilots — Wing Commander R. Rastogi and Co-pilot Flt. Lt. Ganesh — were killed, Lt. Col. Mukhtiar Singh said, adding there were no civilian casualties on the ground. An inquiry has been ordered.
This is the second MiG-21 crash in Srinagar in the past seven months. On December 26, 2002, a MiG-21 had crashed in Budgam in Central Kashmir, killing one civilian and injuring a minor. The pilot, Flight Lieutenant B.K. Chowdhary, had managed to eject out of the plane.
