Pilot still missing after Vietnam's
Russian-made fighter jet loses contact
The Russian-made
fighter jets Su-30MK2 of the Vietnam People’s Air Force.
One pilot has been brought to
safety while another remains missing after a Russian-made fighter jet of the
Vietnam People’s Air Force went off radar during a training session on
Tuesday morning.
Nguyen
Huu Cuong, 39, who was one of the two pilots operating the aircraft Su-30MK2,
has been rescued by a local fishing boat, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen
Cong Luc, deputy chief of the Nghe An Border Guard, confirmed to Tuoi Tre (Youth)
newspaper on Wednesday morning.
Cuong
was found at a location 28 nautical miles northeast of where the Russian-made
warplane first disappeared, according to Luc.
The
pilot was discovered in a stable health condition and will be transferred to
a rescue craft to be brought ashore.
Search
and rescue teams are now exerting all efforts to look for Cuong’s co-pilot,
43-year-old Tran Quang Khai.
Tuoi Tre has
made contact with the fishing ship of Phan Van Le, who saved Cuong, and had a
brief talk with the pilot.
He
said that he and his partner both managed to eject before the plane went down.
The
fighter jet Su-30MK2’s flight path is marked yellow on the map. Photo: Tuoi Tre
Senior
Lieutenant Colonel Khai and Major Cuong were steering the Su-30MK2 during an
exercise above the sea area off the north-central province of Nghe An when
they lost contact with their operators at around 7:30 am.
The
fighter jet departed the Sao Vang airfield in nearby Thanh Hoa Province at
around 6:30 am the same day.
Le
Van Cuong, a fisherman from Thanh Hoa, reported that he saw a plane crashing
at a location about four to six nautical miles northeast of Mat Islet off
Nghe An while he was operating in the area.
Following
the incident, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc issued a document ordering the
Ministry of National Defense and authorities in Nghe An and Thanh Hoa to
carry out an emergency search mission.
The
Vietnam People’s Air Force dispatched four rescue aircraft and dozens of
vessels to potential areas to search for the two pilots.
The
Nghe An Border Guard, upon being informed of the situation, sent three ships
carrying 35 officers to look for the victims, urging local authorities as
well as fishing boats operating near the maritime area where the jet lost
contact to assist the search and rescue efforts.
A vessel carries supplies for
the search and rescue teams. Photo: Tuoi Tre
The
Ministry of National Defense, in coordination with the provincial People’s
Committee, established a command center on Mat Islet to supervise the
mission.
The
1st Regional Command
of the Vietnam People’s Navy also sent a vessel to transport food and water
to the rescue teams, along with five experts and a black-box detector.
According
to Nguyen Sy Hung, deputy chief of the Nghe An search and rescue committee, a
total of 15 ships of officers and local fishermen were searching the seaway
where an oil slick was spotted.
TUOI TRE
NEWS
|
Thứ Tư, 15 tháng 6, 2016
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