Bengaluru, February 19: An IAF pilot Wing Commander Sahil Gandhi died on Tuesday after two Surya Kiran aircraft collided in the air and crashed while rehearsing near the Yelahanka airbase in Bengaluru.
The crash occurred around noon on the outskirts of the airbase in the northern part of the city in an open field close to a residential area.
The twin aircraft were Hawk advanced jet trainers and part of the nine-aircraft Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) which displays dare devilry feats and breath-taking formations in the air.
According to witnesses, the two aircraft that were rehearsing for the aerobatic display collided into each other in the air, thereby spiralling and crashing onto the ground below.
Two pilots were seen ejecting out of the crashing aircraft using parachutes and got injured when they landed on the ground, said residents of a nearby residential locality.
“Gandhi sustained fatal injuries while two other aircrew, Wing Commander V.T Shelke and Squadron Leader T.J. Singh, ejected and were airlifted to Air Force Command Hospital in the city,” an IAF statement said.
