MiG-29KUB fighter designed for India crashed

27.06.2011 Deck-based fighter MiG-29KUB crashed on June 23 in Astrakhan region during trial flight, reported RIA Novosti referring to law enforcement agencies. As a result of the air disaster, honored Russian pilot Col Alexander Kruzhilin and Col Oleg Spichka died. Russian defense ministry confirmed the information about aircrew death.

"At 4.43 pm (Moscow time) the aircraft disappeared from radar monitors approximately 43 km away from Akhtubinsk, Astrakhan region", said the interviewee. The air crash happened during scheduled trial flight, and pilots failed to eject from cockpit.

To investigate causes of the accident, defense ministry set a commission with representatives of defense industry, reports Interfax. Technical failure and pilot error are considered the main reasons of the crash. Definitive conclusions will be made after black box decoding.

The crashed fighter MiG-29KUB was passing trials under the export contract with Indian Navy; such aircrafts are to be based on ex-Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, reports Interfax.

Indian Admiral Nirmal Verma said on June 24 that Indian party would suspend flights of MiG-29KUB if the accident cause was a technical failure.

In 2004 India signed a procurement contract for 16 Russian deck-based fighters MiG-29K to equip its aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (former Admiral Gorshkov). Overall contract cost was $1.5 bln; out of this sum, $526 mln was meant to purchase aircrafts.