Around 11.50 a.m. on Tuesday, the residents of ISRO Akashvihar Layout behind Yelahanka aerodrome heard a thunderous sound. Eyewitnesses described a ball of fire as two aircraft crashed onto the ground.

But the fear of further explosion and the fire that engulfed the wreckage did not deter students of Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology from approaching the injured pilots. Final year aeronautical students Chethan Kumar B.M. and Prajwal H.K., who were on the terrace watching the practice session of the Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team, witnessed the incident from the take-off to when the aircraft grazed each other mid-air and crashed.

“After 10 minutes of stunts in the sky, during one of the formations, it appeared like one aircraft hit the tail of the other. They then started falling. One aircraft hit the ground a few metres away from our building. There were two pilots who ejected themselves from the aircraft with the help of a parachute. One fell on a farmland and the other on the road. We immediately rushed to attend to them,” said Mr. Prajwal.

Mr. Chethan added: “After the crash, it looked like the pilots were coming out of the wreckage. Wing Commander Vijay Shelke was lying on the ground with injuries on his face. We asked him to stay calm and sought instructions. He told us how to remove the belts. Parts of the aircraft started exploding, generating too much heat. We immediately shifted him to a safe place. Meanwhile, he asked us to enquire about his co-pilot. One of our friends rushed there to enquire about him.”

They later learnt that the other pilot, Sqn. Leader Tejeshwar Singh’s parachute was entangled in an electric pole. He fell on the road and sustained injuries on his back and neck. Within 10 minutes, emergency services reached the spot. The Air Force personnel thanked us for the help.”

Uday Kumar, another resident of the layout, said: “It was very difficult to react to the situation. After the crash, the aircraft was in flames and repeated explosions caused fear among the people who gathered there. We were relieved when emergency services reached the spot to attend to the pilots.”

Officials cordon off area

Within 15 minutes, five ambulances, 16 fire tenders, and over 500 policemen and army personnel arrived at the crash site and cordoned off the area. As people gathered in large numbers, the police denied entry to private vehicles to the layout. IAF personnel, who were also deployed at the crash sites, were seen retrieving remains from the wreckage.

Police awaiting preliminary report

The juridical Yelahanka New Town police are waiting for a preliminary report from the Air Force. “We are waiting for them to complete the ground report and file a complaint based on which we will take up a case,” said Kala Krishnamurthy, DCP (North East).

Vijay Shankar, Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban, said he has directed the tahsildar to assess the damage at the crash site and submit a report.