A mid-air collision was averted during an IAF airshow in Ahmedabad on November 12 when wings of two Surya Kiran aircraft brushed against each other during an acrobatic manoeuvre, official sources said.
"A code of inquiry has been set up to probe as to what caused the error that led to brushing of tips of the wings of two Surya Kiran airplanes," Defence PRO Wing Commander T K Singha told PTI on Monday.
"The incident happened when the Surya Kiran team was performing their last manoeuvre, Mirror Image Formation," he added.
"The pilots of both the aircraft had aptly handled the error and made a safe landing," Singha said, adding that the pilots had checked all flying parameters immediately after the incident.
"One of the two aircraft (in the entire formation consisting of nine aircraft) made a precautionary landing after all the other planes had landed," Singha said.
He said the brush was so minor that the entire incident had gone unnoticed by lakhs of people present at Ahmedabad airport.
"Pilots in the Surya Kiran team are very experienced and it is for the inquiry to establish what had gone wrong in the air," he added.
The IAF had organised an aerial show, lasting 90 minutes, in which 65 aircraft, including Sukhois, Mig-23s, Mig 27s, Mig 29s, Jaguars, Surya Kiran and different helicopters participated. The aim was to create awareness among the people and to attract youngsters to the Air Force.
