IAF says Su-30MKI aircraft crashed due to unknown fault

The Su-30MKI aircraft crashed near Pune on Tuesday due to an unknown fault that gave no indication to the pilot and an expert team from Russia has arrived to address it, Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne Friday said.
The flying of entire fleet of 120 aircraft which was suspended after the mishap will resume from Monday.
"There was a problem in the fly-by-wire system... This is a new thing. Pilot did not get any warning. There were no indications in the cockpit and the aircraft was out of control," the IAF chief said in Delhi.
He said the pilot "tried his best to control the aircraft for 15-20 minutes" before ejecting out along with the Weapon Systems Operator (WSO).
Wing Commander GS Sohal was the pilot of the aircraft with Flight Lieutenant U Nautiyal as his WSO.
The first Su-30MKI which had crashed over Rajasthan in 2009 also faced problems in its fly-by wire system.
Asked if the recent air crash was also due to the similar problem, the IAF chief said that was a "different issue".
The ill-fated Su-30 had taken off from Pune's Lohegaon air base at 1240 hours and crashed soon after near Wade Bolhai village there at 1310 hours on Tuesday.
16/12/11 PTI/Daily News & Analysis

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Categories: Safety Dec 2011