A Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft crashed into a college campus in Dhaka’s Uttara area on Monday, killing one person, according to fire service officials.
In a statement, the military’s public relations department confirmed that an F-7 BGI training jet had taken off at 1:06 PM local time (0706 GMT) before crashing.
Over 50 individuals, including both children and adults, sustained burn injuries and were taken to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, according to a hospital official. The total number of fatalities is yet to be confirmed, said a military spokesperson.
Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s interim government, assured that a thorough investigation would be conducted and all necessary support provided. “This accident has caused an irreparable loss to the Air Force, students, teachers, parents, and staff,” he stated.
Footage shared on social media showed a large blaze and thick smoke rising from a lawn as bystanders watched from a distance.
Local newspaper Prothom Alo reported that the aircraft may have crashed onto the roof of the college canteen, although this has not been independently verified by Reuters.
This tragic event comes just over a month after a catastrophic crash in India, where an Air India aircraft struck a medical college hostel in Ahmedabad, killing 241 passengers and 19 people on the ground, the deadliest aviation accident globally in the past decade.