An Indian Air Force Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jet with two pilots on board has been missing since yesterday
China said today it has no information on the missing Indian Air Force Sukhoi fighter jet with two pilots on board and asked India to stick to the arrangements reached between the two sides to maintain peace.
"For the situation you mentioned, I have no relevant information to offer at the moment," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters when asked about the missing Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jet and whether China would assist India in finding the plane that took off from the Tezpur base in Assam for a routine training sortie nearly 24 hours ago. The fighter plane has since been untraceable.
"We hope India can stick to the arrangements reached between the two sides," Mr Lu said.
A Sukhoi Su-30 jet with two Air Force pilots on board took off around 9:30 am yesterday, and went missing near the Doulasang area of Arunachal Pradesh, which is a border state with China. The last contact was with the pilots was around 11:30 am yesterday when the aircraft was nearly 60 km north of Tezpur. The Tezpur Air Force station is located 172 km from the China border.
A search has been on for the aircraft, said Sonitpur district Deputy Commissioner Manoj Kumar Deka.
The Sukhoi Su-30 is a Russian-made, twin-engine fighter meant for all-weather, air-to-air and air-to-surface missions. The first of the Su-30 planes were inducted by the IAF in the late 1990s.
Since their induction, six crashes have taken place. An inquiry into the plane accidents has primarily indicated technical failure as their cause.
In March this year, a Sukhoi-30 aircraft had crashed near an air base in Rajasthan's Barmer. Both pilots had ejected to safety.
(With inputs from PTI)