At least 19 people were killed and 164 others were injured on Monday after a Bangladesh Air Force training jet crashed into a school and college campus in Dhaka, Reuters reported.

The F-7 BGI jet took off from the Kurmitola airbase at 1.06 pm local time as part of a routine training mission, but encountered a technical failure minutes later, military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Sami Ud Dowla Chowdhury was quoted as saying by the agency.

The crash occurred at Milestone School and College in Dhaka’s northern Uttara area.

“The pilot… made a valiant attempt to divert the aircraft away from densely populated areas,” Reuters quoted Chowdhury as saying. “Despite his best efforts, the aircraft ... crashed into a two-storey building belonging to Milestone School and College.”

The pilot of the aircraft was among those who died.

The military has formed a committee to investigate the crash.

Footage from the scene showed a large fire breaking out near a lawn, with thick smoke billowing into the sky. Following the crash, members of the Bangladesh Army and eight units of the Fire Service and Civil Defence rushed to the site and began rescue operations, The Daily Star reported.

The F-7 BGI is the most advanced variant of China’s Chengdu J-7, which is a licensed version of the Soviet MiG-21. Bangladesh acquired 16 of these aircraft under a contract signed in 2011, with deliveries completed by 2013, Reuters reported.

Muhammad Yunus, the head of the country’s interim government, expressed condolences to the kin of those who died, and called the crash “a moment of deep pain for the nation”.

He promised a full investigation into the accident and added that the government will “ensure all kinds of assistance”.