Sukhoi fighter jets back in the sky

New Delhi, Dec 7: The Indian Air Force's frontline fighter jets Sukhoi Su-30 MKI, which were grounded nearly a week ago after a crash, resumed flying Monday, an official said.

"The Sukhoi fleet was grounded for routine checks which are mandatory after a crash. It has resumed flying," said an IAF official, requesting anonymity.

In the second accident involving a Sukhoi-30MKI, an aircraft crashed southwest of Pokharan in Rajasthan at 5.30 p.m. Nov 30.

The aircraft was on a routine training sortie for a fire power demonstration when it crashed.

The pilots, identified as Wing Cdr. Srivastava and Flt. Lt. Arora, ejected in time and survived the crash.

This was the second crash of the Sukhoi combat jet since its induction into the force 12 years ago.

In April this year, a Sukhoi had crashed in Rajasthan due to the failure of its sophisticated fly-by-wire system. The pilot, Wing Commander S.V. Munje, and the co-pilot, Wing Commander P.S. Narah, had managed to bail out in time but the latter was killed after being apparently hit by the falling debris of the aircraft. The reason behind the crash is yet to be ascertained.

The Su-30 was inducted in 1996 and the IAF fleet currently has 98 such aircraft. This number will rise to 230 by 2015.