Five Indian Air Force personnel were killed after an AN-32 military transport aircraft crashed while attempting to land at the Jorhat Air Force Station in Assam on Saturday.

The deceased have been identified as Sqn Ldr Prashant Singh, Flt Lt Shubham Kumar, Sgt Jitendra Sharma, Agniveervayu Khemaram Kumawat and Agniveervayu Danish Alam.

The accident occurred during the final phase of landing at the Jorhat airfield, raising fresh questions over whether adverse weather conditions, technical issues or other operational factors may have played a role in the tragedy.

Confirming the incident, the Indian Air Force said it has ordered a Court of Inquiry to establish the circumstances that led to the crash.

"An IAF An-32 aircraft met with an accident today while landing at Jorhat. A court of inquiry is being constituted to ascertain the cause of the accident," the force said in a statement posted on X.

 

Emergency rescue and firefighting teams were rushed to the crash site immediately after the aircraft went down.

The AN-32, a twin-engine tactical transport aircraft, has long formed the backbone of the IAF's logistical operations. Designed to operate in challenging environments, the aircraft is routinely deployed for troop movement, cargo transportation, disaster relief missions and supply operations in remote and high-altitude regions.

Aviation experts cautioned against drawing conclusions before the official probe is completed. However, former Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) Flight Operations Inspector Prashant Dhalla noted that prevailing weather conditions could emerge as a significant area of investigation.

"It's a very unfortunate accident. The AN-32 is a widely used aircraft in the Indian Air Force and is primarily used for the transport of cargo. The surprising part is that this crash has happened within the vicinity of the Jorhart Air Force Station base. According to me, there can be multiple factors. That is a matter for the investigation. However, there were heavy rains reported. Also, low cloud activity was reported at Jorhart. It can be a case of spatial disorientation, a technical error, a weather related phenomena which has led to this catastrophic accident," Dhalla told ANI.