Churu: A fighter jet of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in Ratangarh in Rajasthan’s Churu district on Wednesday. The pilot of the fighter aircraft was killed. His body has been recovered from the spot. It is yet to be confirmed whether the aircraft was on a training or an operational mission when it crashed.

The plane — a Jaguar fighter — crashed near Bhanuda village in the Ratangarh area around 12:40 pm. The police and administrative teams rushed to the spot on receiving the alert. The cause of the crash is yet to be ascertained. According to local media reports, an eyewitness said the aircraft appeared to lose control before crashing. On impact, the plane caught fire.

Visuals from the crash site show a thick plume of smoke rising from the area and wreckage of the plane burning. A large number of people also gathered at the accident site. The IAF has not issued any official statement on the incident as yet. Rajasthan is home to several IAF airbases, including one in Jodhpur and another in Bikaner.

In April, an Air Force Jaguar fighter aircraft crashed near Gujarat’s Jamnagar. The aircraft crashed during a training mission after developing a technical snag. One of the pilots, Siddharth Yadav, was killed in the crash while saving the life of the other. The co-pilot ejected in time and sustained minor injuries.