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A Mig-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed near Chabua in Upper Assam sending the Indian Air Force, which is already reeling under series of air crashes, into a tizzy.
The pilot of the aircraft, however, managed to eject out of the cockpit to safety, IAF sources said. The type-77 aircraft, which took off from the Chabua airbase around 1400 hrs crashed immediately after take off near the airbase after it experienced a technical snag.
The aircraft, sources said, was on a training sortie when the mishap occurred, the sources said. "The pilot reported the technical error to the airbase and later jettisoned the aircraft," an IAF source added.
The MiG-21 crash today is the sixth mishap this year. The IAF had lost a Kiran MK-II trainer aircraft of its Surya Kiran aerobatics team on Januray 21, a Sukhoi on April 30, a MiG-27 on May 15, a MiG-21 Byson on May 27, and an AN-32 on June 9.