21/07/2025
A devastating tragedy unfolded in Dhaka on Monday when a Bangladeshi Air Force training fighter jet crashed into a school compound, killing at least 19 people and injuring dozens more. The incident, which occurred at Milestone School and College in the capital, is now being described as the deadliest aviation accident in Bangladesh in decades.
The aircraft involved—a Chinese-made F-7 BGI fighter jet—went down shortly after 1:00 p.m. local time (0700 GMT), just as students were being dismissed from class. According to eyewitness accounts, two fighter jets were flying overhead when one suddenly plummeted into the school’s junior playground, triggering a massive explosion.
“It felt like an earthquake,” said Shafiur Rahman Shafi, an 18-year-old student at the school. “There was a loud boom, followed by fire. We were on the senior playground when it happened, and we all ran in panic.”
The crash site quickly became the focus of rescue efforts, with military personnel and emergency responders working to extract victims and provide first aid. An AFP photographer on the scene captured images of injured students being carried away on stretchers, while soldiers helped clear debris from the playground.
A military statement later confirmed that 19 people, including the jet’s pilot, had died in the crash. An additional 20 individuals were reported to be in critical condition. In total, at least 51 people—most of them students—are currently receiving treatment at the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute in Dhaka, according to the institute’s director, Mohammad Nasir Uddin.
Scenes at the hospital were harrowing. Grieving families gathered in shock, searching for loved ones. Among them was Tofazzal Hossain, 30, who broke down in tears upon learning that his cousin, a student in eighth grade, had died in the crash. “We frantically searched different hospitals before we found his body,” he said.
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