F7 BGI fighter jet Bangladesh: At least 19 dead and 164 injured after air force jet crashes into school in Dhaka due to mechanical fault
At least 19 people have died and 164 were injured after a F-7 BGI fighter jet crashed into a school in Bangladesh.
The armed forces said in a statement on Facebook that the F-7 jet experienced a mechanical fault after taking off for a training exercise just after 13:00 local time (07:06 GMT). The pilot was among those killed, the air force added.
The fighter jet crashed into Milestone School and College in the northern suburb of Uttara, in the capital city Dhaka. Footage shows a huge fire and thick smoke, after the aircraft slammed into a two-storey building.
More than 50 people, including children and adults, were taken to hospital with burns, a doctor at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery said. The age range for students attending the school is between four and 18 years old.
The pilot, Flight Lieutenant Md. Taukir Islam, had tried to navigate the jet to a less populated area after the mechanical fault occurred, the armed forces statement said. He had only just taken off from an air force base in the capital.
The injured have been transferred to nearby hospitals, while emergency teams are continuing rescue operations at the scene. An investigation committee has been formed to look into the incident, the statement added.
Bangladesh has announced a day of mourning on Tuesday, when the national flag will be flown at half-mast across the country.