Pakistan

Pilot killed as PAF Mirage jet crashes in Karachi

Board of inquiry has been ordered by Air Headquarters to determine the cause of the accident

Faraz Khan October 18, 2016

The plane took off from Masroor Base, before it crashed in Musharraf Colony. PHOTO: EXPRESS

KARACHI: A pilot of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) was killed on Tuesday as his Mirage jet crashed near Karachi's Musharraf Colony.

According to Squadron leader Baqir Ali, PAF Mirage jetbearing tale number 921 took off from Masroor Base, before it crashed near Musharraf Colony. The pilot died on the spot, police officials stated.

"A Mirage plane crashed near Musharraf colony," Senior Superintendent Police city confirmed.

Pilot killed as PAF fighter jet crashes in Khyber Agency

"The pilot ejected from the aircraft and sustained fatal injuries," PAF spokesperson said in a statement, adding that though the pilot did not survive himself, he "succeeded in saving precious lives on ground."

"No loss of civilian life or property has been reported. A board of inquiry has been ordered by Air Headquarters to determine the cause of the accident," the statement read.

Last month, a PAF pilot was killed as his fighter jet crashed in Jamrud, Khyber Agency. “The pilot of the aircraft Flt Lt Omer Shazad sustained fatal injuries,” the military’s media wing ISPR said. The PAF aircraft was on a routine operational training mission.

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Officials claim the aircraft crashed due to a technical fault. Speaking to The Express Tribune, a senior official of the political administration said, “A team of Swat scouts and Levis officials have been sent to the site of the incident.”

COMMENTS (18)

Humair | 7 years ago | Reply Veey saad

someone | 8 years ago | Reply @Rex Minor: He was on duty.....

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Yahya | 8 years ago | Reply @Salman Nisar: Only Allah knows the best. May Allah place his soul among Shuhada

Mostly Bull | 8 years ago | Reply Well, well, well.......RIP young feller; paf today 72 for 1, during the last thirty days 288 for 4;

Khurram Asghar | 8 years ago | Reply Very sad.:'( May his soul rest in peace. Aameen.

Rex Minor | 8 years ago | Reply @Salman Nisar: And why do you reckon that he was martyred, the terminology your military constantly uses? Was he chasing a foot soldier of the talibans? He was killed either by his own fault or due to a technical defect in the kite. Rex Minor

Yogesh | 8 years ago | Reply RPI . Sad to see young ppl dying like this in both nations.

Razi Ahmad | 8 years ago | Reply People living near air bases never play their pivotal role in the aircraft safety. Bird hits are routine around Masroor..Peshawar and Faisal. These routine incidents when pilot successfuly return with dead burning engine saving precious million of dollars...never reported in Media.

Humza | 8 years ago | Reply @OSD: The problem is that a lot of uneducated people in Pakistan have no idea that a fighter plane, old or new and regardless of maintenance is subject to accidents and incidents of this nature due to the inherent operation of fighter jets. Even the best equipped air forces with the most modern jets experience fatalities. that is not to say, efforts shouldn't be made to source the best planes and have the best possible maintenance but it is sad that some people pass judgement before taking into account a basic understanding of the numerous flight accidents that take place in air forces all over the world. Condolences to the family of the airman.

Pakistani | 8 years ago | Reply @Adnan Siddiqi: Pakistan wants to replacew the mirage and thew f-6 with the JF-17.We just dont have enough of them yet.

OSD | 8 years ago | Reply @Adnan Siddiqi: It is a question of economics and not fetish. This was the best option the PAF had while Pakistan was under sanctions in the 1990s and they have been brilliantly maintained. Compared to the IAF, the PAF chose a much better option and it is now effectively replacing them with the JF-17. The IAF programs on the other hand have been severely delayed. Do look at the factors in a situation before you comment. Condolences for the death of the pilot. Tragic as it is, we are proud of the achievements and sacrifices of our armed forces.

Haji Atiya | 8 years ago | Reply @Adnan Siddiqi: But surprisingly the F-86 Sabres, though used many years after what would be considered their normal usability period, had comparatively speaking very few of these type of crashes..

Javed Mateen | 8 years ago | Reply Mirages are old and obsolete , they pose danger both to pilot and people on the ground Please scrap these oldies

sfa | 8 years ago | Reply @Adnan Siddiqi: They are overhauled in Kamra Mirage rebuilt factory. Please the the statistics of brand new planes crashing in other Air forces regularly. A-400M Spanish Air Force crashed during evaluation recently. Look it up and you will know military planes can have accidents How many F-22s, Rafales and F-18/16s are lost every year ? Mirages are our biggest fighter force So what should we do with them if no one is ready to sell us new fighters and we dont have money ? 8 F-16s are recently stopped by Americans for us. Such irresponsible comments Instead you should feel for the departed soul and his bereaved family.

Salman Nisar | 8 years ago | Reply ET please correct title as Pilot Martyred

BrainBro | 8 years ago | Reply Mirage, F-7s are extremely old. But, then replacing these aircraft with Chinese junk is also not recommended. It is either US, Russia, France or Switzerland (Saab JAS 39 Gripen) that the Airforce needs to push for.

Sobaan Akbar | 8 years ago | Reply i don't know why PAF keep using those obsolete mirage and F7 jets.. this is 4th crash of PAF jet within a month. i don't know what is happening inside PAF. but this is a big question on operational efficiency of PAF

Adnan Siddiqi | 8 years ago | Reply Even the engineers at Dassault who designed the Mirage 60 years ago have been long dead. Yet our air force continues to have a fetish with the Mirage, even after being in PAF service for 39 years!

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