5 die in Indian air force cargo plane crash

A file photo of Super Hercules cargo plane

In a major setback to the Indian Air Force, a US-made C-130J Super Hercules Special Operations transport aircraft on Friday crashed near Gwalior after taking off from Agra air base, said Times of India.

The fate of the crew is not yet known, the Indian newspaper reports on its website quoting IAF officials.

"One C-130J aircraft crashed 72 miles (115 km) west of Gwalior air base. The aircraft was airborne from Agra at 1000 hours for a routine flying training mission. A court of inquiry has been ordered to investigate into the cause of the accident," an IAF spokesperson said.

Police in Jaipur said senior officials, including superintendent of police, Karauli, have rushed to the spot of the crash along Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh border.

India had recently inducted six C-130J Super Hercules aircraft, which were bought from the US at the cost of around Rs 6000 crore ($1.1 billion) four years ago.

The home base of the 77 squadron 'Veiled Vipers' operating the aircraft is Hindan in Ghaziabad near here.

The aircraft were recently landed on the Daulat Beg Oldie air field near China border and have helped in boosting IAF's capability to airlift troops closer to the borders in times of emergency.