Two pilots have been found alive after crashing their military jet in a dense jungle.
Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Hong Quan and Colonel Nguyen Van Son were forced to eject from their plane while carrying out a training exercise on Wednesday (6 Nov) morning.
The Russian-made Yakovlev Yak-130 combat aircraft encountered a technical fault in mid-air at around 10.30am and both pilots parachuted out before it crashed.
The Vietnamese Air Force pilots ended up a mile apart in the jungle in central Binh Dinh Province, Vietnam.
Phan Chi Hung, head of the Tay Son District People’s Committee, said military officials first received a call from Lt. Col. Quan at around 4.30pm.
He spent hours climbing out of a deep ravine to get a phone signal before his battery ran out.
Col. Son then managed to make a call at around 6.45pm, also confirming that he was safe.
However, he said he was lost and alone in the jungle.
Major Hoang Bao An calculated the pilots’ positions on a map at the Binh Dinh Provincial Military Command Base.
He worked out their approximate locations based on where he believed the jet crashed and the GPS tracking of the pilots’ phones.
However, poor weather and weak signals in the mountainous region meant there was a lot of guesswork involved.
A search team involving hundreds of soldiers combed the area of Tay Son District to track down the pilots.
Lt. Col. Quan was located at around 8.20pm.
Col. Son was found at approximately 10pm, about a mile away from his colleague.
Both pilots were taken to a hospital for medical checks in a stable condition.
An investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing.
The Vietnam People’s Air Force operates a fleet that includes Sukhoi Su-22, Su-27, and Su-30 aircraft.
Over the years, Vietnam has relied heavily on Russia for their military hardware.
But recent geopolitical events, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, has prompted Vietnamese officials to source new suppliers of military equipment.
In January this year, a Soviet-era Su-22 fighter jet crashed in Quang Nam Province.
One year before, a similar crash near the Yen Bai Air Base resulted in the death of a pilot, as reported by Need To Know.
The latest incident has highlighted Vietnam’s need to establish alternative defence partnerships.
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