General Vo Van Tuan: 'Su-22 squadron crashed due to mid-air collision'

Authorities have recovered the last black box of the Su-22 squadron that crashed in Phu Quy waters. The cause of the accident is believed to be a mid-air collision.

On May 1, Lieutenant General Vo Van Tuan, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, said that the search for the planes and pilots in the waters of Phu Quy island district (Binh Thuan) will end today when the last black box of the Su-22 squadron is found.

The Ministry of Defense will quickly decode the two black boxes to determine the exact cause of the serious accident. "Based on the information obtained, it can be said that the accident was caused by two planes colliding in the air, not due to a technical error," said Mr. Tuan.

Previously, the bodies of two pilots Le Van Nghia and Nguyen Anh Tu were found and brought to Ho Chi Minh City. On May 3, the Air Defense - Air Force will hold a memorial service and a memorial service for the two pilots at the Ministry of National Defense funeral home. After cremation, they will be brought back to their hometowns for burial according to their families' wishes.

The Ministry of National Defense has decided to recognize two pilots as martyrs and promote them one rank ahead of schedule because they died while performing combat training missions. Accordingly, Lieutenant Colonel Le Van Nghia was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, and Captain Nguyen Anh Tu was promoted to the rank of Major.

The Deputy Chief of the General Staff added, "This incident of aircraft collision during training also happens frequently in the world when the vehicles fly close to each other." Mr. Tuan cited that two months ago, at the Langkawi International Maritime and Air Show (LIMA) held in Malaysia, two KT-1B aircraft belonging to Indonesia's Jupiter aerobatic team also suddenly collided while practicing for a performance, but fortunately the pilots were able to parachute to safety.

At 11:35 a.m. on April 16, a squadron of 2 Su-22 aircraft took off from Phan Rang airport (Ninh Thuan) to the airspace of Phu Quy island and lost contact. The target area was about 10-20 km north of Phu Quy island. Lieutenant Colonel Le Van Nghia (level 1 pilot, Deputy Commander of Regiment 937, Division 370, piloted aircraft number 5857) and Captain Nguyen Anh Tu (level 3 pilot, Deputy Commander of Squadron 1, Regiment 937, Division 370) piloted aircraft 5863. The joint force conducted a 16-day search in an area of ​​sea about 32 meters deep.

According to VNA