A Bangladesh Air Force training jet crashed into a school building in Dhaka’s Uttara area on Monday, July 21, leaving at least one person dead and over 100 injured, including dozens of students.
The China-made F-7 aircraft slammed into the Milestone School and College while classes were in session, triggering a massive fire and widespread panic. Television footage showed thick plumes of black smoke billowing from the scene as emergency responders rushed to the site.
Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos, with students – some severely burned and bleeding – fleeing in panic. With ambulances delayed, Army personnel carried injured students in their arms, transporting them to hospitals using rickshaw vans and private vehicles.
Initial rescue operations were launched by the school’s teachers and staff, later joined by Army troops and fire service teams. According to a schoolteacher, the jet hit the front portion of the three-storey building, trapping several students inside.
More than 30 of the injured were admitted to the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, while others were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment, according to The Daily Star.
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus expressed profound grief over the tragedy and assured a thorough investigation. “The loss suffered by the Air Force, students, parents, teachers, and the staff of Milestone School and College is irreparable. This is a moment of deep sorrow for the nation,” he said in a statement.
This marks the second crash involving a Chinese-made F-7 fighter jet this year. Just last month, a Myanmar Air Force F-7 crashed in the Sagaing region, killing the pilot, raising further concerns about the reliability of Beijing’s defense exports.
