A spectacular flame-out

The Aviationist reports:

An Indian Air Force (IAF) SEPECAT Jaguar or “Shamsher” was involved in a bird strike incident on takeoff from Ambala Air Force Station outside the Indian town of Ambala on Thursday, June 27, 2019. Video of the accident posted in Indian media and on Twitter showed the aircraft fly through a group of birds, emit flame from at least one engine, and then jettison its underwing stores. Some of the stores carried by the Jaguar were reported to be “Carrier Bomb Light Stores” pods (CBLS) that exploded on impact.

. . .

The Indian Air Force praised the pilot on Twitter, reporting that, “Despite most serious emergencies staring in his face, the young pilot assessed the situation in seconds, jettisoned two additional fuel drop tanks & CBLS Pods as per standard operating procedure & safely landed the aircraft.”

There's more at the link.

The prematurely released fuel tanks and CBLS pods appear to have fallen within the airport boundary, preventing a larger tragedy if they'd fallen into residential or commercial areas.  The resulting explosions were certainly spectacular.  See for yourself.

Full marks to the pilot for controlling the sudden loss of speed and altitude caused by losing an engine, and having the presence of mind to release his external stores quickly, before the aircraft got too far away from the runway.  Given the housing that often grows up around military bases, particularly in a densely populated country like India, he probably saved lives on the ground by doing so.

Peter