Squadron Leader Anuj Vashisht’s family in Gurugram was busy preparing for his upcoming wedding when tragedy struck on Friday afternoon.
The celebrations turned into grief after the family received a call from an Indian Air Force official informing them that Vashisht had died in the crash of a Su-30 MKI fighter jet in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district.
Soon after the news came in, some members of the family left for Assam, said Chandra Prakash, a relative. Vashisht’s mother has not yet been told about his death.
According to family members, she has been informed only that he was injured in the crash, news agency PTI reported.
As word of the tragedy spread, friends and relatives began arriving at the family’s residence in Sector 22B in Gurugram.
A family friend said Vashisht originally belonged to Haryana’s Bhiwani district. He is survived by his father, retired Subedar Anand Prakash, his mother Anita Devi, and a younger brother.
“Anuj completed his early education from Kendriya Vidyalaya in Sector 14, Gurugram, and subsequently joined the Indian Air Force. His family was preparing for his wedding and his fiancee is also a pilot,” Prakash told PTI.
The Indian Air Force confirmed on Friday that Vashisht and Flight Lieutenant Purvesh Duragkar were killed in the crash. Their Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft, which had taken off from the Jorhat airbase for a training sortie, disappeared from radar shortly after take-off a day earlier.
Union minister Rao Inderjit Singh and Haryana’s Military and Paramilitary Welfare Minister Rao Narbir Singh expressed condolences over the deaths, saying the nation would always remember the sacrifice of its brave sons.
They said Vashisht showed “indomitable courage, dedication and patriotism” in serving the nation, adding that his supreme sacrifice would continue to inspire the country.
The Russian-origin aircraft was on a training sortie and disappeared from radar shortly after taking off from Jorhat airbase on Thursday. Flight Lieutenant Purvesh Duragkar was also killed in the crash.
