Two Indian Air Force fighter jets crashed on Saturday, killing one pilot, in a mid-air collision during a training exercise south of the capital New Delhi.
The crash involved a Russian-made Sukhoi Su-30, carrying two pilots, and a French-made Mirage 2000, operated by a third party.
Both planes had taken off in the early hours of the morning from Gwalior air base, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of where they came down.
“The plane was on a routine operational flying training mission,” the country’s air force said in a statement, adding that one of the three pilots suffered fatal injuries.
An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the accident, he added.
Police officer Dharmender Gaur told AFP from the crash site that the other pilot was found alive but injured in the Padargarh forest about 300 kilometers (185 miles) away.
“We have found the wreckage of one of the planes,” the officer said. “Another plane may be away from the site and we have sent a team to find it.”
Local authorities have been ordered to help with rescue and air force assistance, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan tweeted.
“I pray to God that the pilot of the plane is safe,” he said.
The crash is the latest in a string of aviation accidents involving India’s military air fleet.
Five army soldiers were killed last October when their helicopter crashed in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, near the military border and dispute with China.
It was the country’s second military helicopter crash that month, a few weeks after a Cheetah helicopter went down near the town of Tawang, killing its pilot.
India’s defense chief, General Bipin Rawat, was among 13 people killed when a Russian-made Mi-17 helicopter crashed while transporting him to an air force base in December 2021.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is grappling with the daunting task of overhauling India’s aging armed forces.
The military establishment is worried about China’s growing power on the vast Himalayan border, which in 2019 led to an ongoing diplomatic freeze after a deadly high-profile confrontation between the two countries’ forces.
India unveiled its first locally built aircraft carrier last year as part of the government’s efforts to build an indigenous defense industry and reduce dependence on Russia, historically its most important arms supplier.
Efforts to reform military recruitment to reduce India’s bloated defense salaries stalled last year after a backlash from wannabe soldiers, who torched train carriages and clashed with police in fierce protests.