A MiG 29K fighter aircraft of the Indian Navy crashed over the sea on Wednesday while it was on a routine sortie off the Goa coast.
The pilot has been recovered and is stable.
"The twin-engine MiG-29K crashed over the sea after it developed a technical malfunction while returning to base. The pilot ejected safely and has been recovered in a swift search & rescue operation. He is reported to be in stable condition," Indian Navy said.
The Navy said it has ordered a Board of Inquiry (BoI) to investigate the cause of the incident.The Indian Navy is the world's only operator of the MiG-29K fighter aircraft acquired from Russia along with Admiral Gorshkov renamed INS Vikramaditya in India.
The safety record of the MiG-29Ks has not been very good. The force is now looking at the procurement of 25-26 foreign fighter aircraft for operations from the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant commissioned recently by the Prime Minister in Kochi.
The MiG-29s are deployed in Goa at the naval base INS Hansa.
