The Indian Air Force on Friday ordered a Court of Inquiry into a Sukhoi-30 fighter jet accident, the wreckage of which was found near Tezpur in Assam three days after it went missing, PTI reported. The Indian Air Force’s spokesperson said the accident site is inaccessible and that ground parties are standing by to be airlifted to the crash area.
“A court of inquiry has been ordered to investigate the cause of the accident,” IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Anupam Banerjee said. The team deployed will search for the flight data recorder and missing crew. Banerjee said Army personnel will reach the crash site by trekking cross country. He added that efforts have been hindered by bad weather and an inhospitable terrain.
The plane had gone missing around 60 km from Tezpur in Assam an hour after taking off on Tuesday. There were two pilots on board conducting a routine sortie. The wreckage on Friday was found near Tezpur, around 172 km away from the Chinese border.
A Sukhoi-30 and a C-130 aircraft, as well as helicopters, were deployed as part of a massive search operation. As many as nine teams of the Indian Army and two teams of the state administration were also part of the rescue efforts.
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