Fighter aircraft crashes in Ctg

A fighter plane catches fire instants before it lands and skids off the runway at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong yesterday. Photo: Anurup Kanti Das

A fighter aircraft of Bangladesh Air Force crashed at Shah Amanat International Airport in the port city yesterday.
Flight Lt Muntasin, the lone pilot of the aircraft A-5, managed to eject by parachute, said SM Joynal Abedin, duty manager of the airport.
The pilot sustained minor head injuries and was taken to the air force hospital at Sergeant Zahirul Haq Airbase at Potenga.
The accident happened around 12:20pm when the aircraft was landing on the southern runway after a training session.
It crashed seconds before touching down the ground when its rear wheel caught fire, Joynal said.
Later, the flame spread through the entire aircraft, he said, adding that the civil aviation authorities managed to douse the blaze within a few minutes.
“The aircraft exploded with a big bang when it crashed. Then a coiling cloud of smoke went skyward,” said Abu Taher, who saw the crash.
The accident stopped the activities of the airport for an hour. However, it did not disrupt the flight operation, as no commercial flights were scheduled to take off during the one hour.