By IANS,
New Delhi : The Indian Air Force (IAF) lost 33 combat jets in the last four years, 27 of them MiGs, parliament was told Monday. Ten helicopters also crashed during this period.
Twenty-six defence personnel, including 13 pilots, lost their lives in the crashes, Defence Minister A.K. Antony told the Lok Sabha.
From April 1, 2008 to March 13 this year, 27 MiGs – 16 of them MiG-21s – three Sukhoi SU-30s, two Mirage-2000s and a Jaguar crashed, he said.
Six civilians were also killed in these crashes.
Antony said a majority of the accidents took place due to human error and technical defects.
Every accident is thoroughly investigated by a court of inquiry to ascertain the cause. Remedial measures are taken to prevent a recurrence, he added
“However, improvement of skills of pilots is a continuous process. Several steps have been taken by the government in this regard,” Antony said.
These include increased use of simulators to practice procedures and emergency actions, focused and realistic training with additional emphasis on the critical aspects of mission, introduction of crew resource management and operational risk management.
“The decisions to phase out aircraft are taken based on various factors including residual life of the aircraft and operational considerations and is reviewed by the government from time to time,” Antony added.