The Ministry of Defense has announced that 9 crew members of CASA 212 plane had fallen to the sea with their plane and they were believed to be dead.
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| Ship 926 retrieved CASA 212. (Photo: Vietnam Ministry of Defense). |
The plane location was about 2.7 nautical miles west of the deliniation line, some 15 nautical miles south-southeast of Bạch Long Vĩ island. From the depth of 50 - 60 meter, key parts of the plane including its fuselage, tail, blades, engine and personal belongings of crew members. At the incident location, bodies down with the plane were retrieved and confirmed by the military's post mortem division as bodies of the crew members.
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| A piece of fuselage with numbers 8983 found. (Photo: VNA) |
Regarding Su30-MK2 and pilots: The Su30-MK2 fell some 25 nautical miles North East of Cửa Vạn, Nghệ An. On the location, the Su30-MK2's nose with number 8585 was retrieved; further recovery of its black box and other plane's parts would continue. Pilot Colonel Trần Quang Khải's body was found and brought onshore with funeral held and benificiary policy granted for his family. Pilot Nguyễn Hữu Cường was saved and now under medical care with positive health recovery.
The Ministry of Defense planned further retrieval and rescue operations with beneficiary policies ensured for military personnel sacrificed their life in mission.