Trainer aircraft crashes in Amreli, pilot dies

A trainee pilot was killed when a trainer aircraft belonging to a private aviation academy crashed in a residential area in Gujarat's Amreli district on Tuesday afternoon and caught fire, a police official said.

The plane fell on a tree before crashing into an open plot.

The aircraft crash-landed into a residential area in the Giriya Road area of Amreli town at around 12:30 pm due to unknown reasons, killing the trainee pilot on the spot, said Amreli Superintendent of Police, Sanjay Kharat.

The pilot was flying solo. The aircraft had taken off from the Amreli airport, he added.

After it crashed near Shastri Nagar area, the plane caught fire and engulfed in flames, said Kharat.

"After taking off from the Amreli airport with a male trainee pilot, the trainer aircraft of an aviation academy, which operates from the airport, crashed into a residential area. The trainee pilot, who was flying solo, died in the crash while the aircraft was gutted in flames. No one else was injured in the accident," said Kharat.

He said a Delhi-based aviation academy provides pilot training from the Amreli airport.

The SP said local police have started the process to lodge a case of accidental death and investigation to find out the exact cause of the crash.

Four teams of local fire brigade rushed to Shastrinagar upon learning about the plane crash and resultant fire in the aircraft, said fire officer SC Gadhvi.

"Though the plane crashed into a residential area, no one else was injured because it first fell on a tree and then crashed into an open plot. The fire was eventually brought under control by our teams" he said.