SU-30 MK-I crashes in Rajasthan, pilot killed :(Lead)

New Delhi, Apr 30 (ANI): A SU-30 MK-I aircraft of the Indian Air Force on a routine training mission crashed 70 kms southeast of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, today.

The aircraft had taken off from aircraft had taken off from the Lohegaon air base in Pune.

"The crash took place around 10:30 a.m. Both the pilots ejected out of the aircraft. While Wing Commander SV Munje survived the crash, Wing Commander PS Nara succumbed to his injuries," the IAF said in a statement released today.

"There is no reported damage to any civil property or life on ground. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to investigate the reasons for the accident," the statement added.

This is the first crash of a SU-30MKI, which was inducted into the IAF in 1997. The IAF operates three squadrons (approximately 55 aircraft) of the jet. (ANI)