Bangladesh Air Force plane crashes into school; death toll rises to 27

DHAKA: The death toll in the Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft mishap rose to 27. A total of 170 people were injured, and most of them are children. Many are in critical condition. The Chinese-made F-7 aircraft crashed at 12.48 pm Indian time yesterday at the Milestone School and College campus in Uttara, a northern area of Dhaka.

The F-7 BGI aircraft (an advanced version of the Chengdu J-7 fighter jet) that took off at 12.36 pm crashed near the school's lawn, where about 2,000 children (from elementary to 12th grade) study.

Many children and teachers were in the building at the time. The smoke from the crash engulfed the area. It is believed that a technical fault in the plane led to the accident. The Bangladesh government formed a special investigation team to probe the incident.

Interim government head Muhammad Yunus promised all assistance to the victims’ kin and the injured.