Goa: Navy’s MiG jet crashes, pilots eject safely

A MiG 29K fighter jet of the Indian Navy, which was on a training mission, crashed shortly after taking off in Goa on Saturday, officials said.

“During a training mission, after take off from INS HANSA at Dabolim a Mig 29k trainer aircraft suffered an engine fire. The pilots Capt M Sheokhand and Lt Cdr Deepak Yadav ejected safely, the navy tweeted.

The cause of the engine failure was not immediately known but some reports claimed it was on account of a bird hit.

Navy sources confirmed that the aircraft being flown by trainee pilots landed in an open area.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing a huge plume of smoke as well as two parachutes descending after the crash. More details of the incident are awaited.