Missing Indian Navy pilot Nishant Singh’s body recovered 11 days after jet crash: Reports
The identity of the recovered body can be confirmed only after a DNA test.
A body believed to be of Indian Navy pilot Commander Nishant Singh was recovered by the naval forces on Monday, the Hindustan Times reported. Officials are awaiting the result of a DNA test to confirm the identity.
“Mortal remains of a human body have been recovered in the vicinity of the MiG-29K wreckage site off Goa coast,” a Navy spokesperson said, according to ANI. “The samples are being sent for DNA testing for confirmation of identity.”
Singh, a MiG-29K pilot, had gone missing after his jet crashed into the Arabian Sea on November 26. One of the two pilots in the jet was rescued soon after the crash.
The identity of the recovered body, which was found near the crash site, can only be confirmed after a DNA test, as it was beyond recognition when it was found, the Hindustan Times reported, quoting unnamed sources.
The jet had taken off from aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya and went down around 5 pm on November 26, according to India Today. The INS Vikramaditya was part of the recent Malabar exercise involving the navies of India, the US, Australia and Japan.
Following the crash, the Navy deployed nine warships, 14 aircraft and a number of fast interceptor crafts, as part of a search operation.
The Navy has also ordered an inquiry into the crash, the third involving a MiG-29K, the naval variant of the jet, in the past year. A MiG-29K twin-seat fighter aircraft had crashed in South Goa district in November last year and both the pilots had ejected safely. Another MiG-29K crashed into the Arabian Sea off the Goa coast on February 23 this year after taking off from INS Hansa, according to India Today.