IAF's C-130J Super Hercules aircraft crashes near Gwalior

NEW DELHI: In a major setback to the Air Force, a newly acquired US-made C-130J transport aircraft today crashed near Gwalior after taking off from Agra air base, killing five crew members, including four officers.

Two Wing Commanders, two Squadron Leaders and another crew member were killed in the Super Hercules Special Operations plane crash, Defence PRO told reporters in Jaipur.

"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 in New Delhi.

Senior officials, including Superintendent of Police, Karauli, have rushed to the spot of the crash along Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh border.


Watch: IAF's C-130J Hercules plane crashes near Gwalior


Air Force Chief Arup Raha has briefed Defence Minister A K Antony about the crash. Senior officers from the Air Headquarters have been dispatched to the crash site, they said.

Local IAF units have also rushed officers and men in choppers to the accident area, they said.
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.

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.




Customized for 'covert special operations', the C-130Js are capable of landing at makeshift, short runways.

The aircraft is capable of airdropping commandos and material in darkness due to its night-vision imaging. It can prove very handy in wartime due to its ability for special air operations and transport of material and supplies.

During peacetime, it can be used in mountainous terrain in hostile circumstances. The four-engine plane with Rolls Royce engines has the technology and configuration to perform low-level precision flying.

India had recently deployed a C-130J Super Hercules to help search for the missing Malaysian plane MH370. It was also used in rescue operations in flood-hit Uttarakhand.