PILATUS PC-7 MK II (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 - Sci and Tech)

Context: Recently, two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots lost their lives in a tragic incident when their Pilatus PC-7 Mk II trainer aircraft crashed during a routine training sortie from the Air Force Academy at Dundigal, Telangana.

Pilatus PC-7 Mk II trainer Aircraft

• About: A trainer is a class of aircraft designed specifically to facilitate flight training of pilots and aircrews.
• Trainer Planes: Slow, simple, and spin-proof - perfect for clumsy cadets, not supersonic jets.
• Types of Trainer Aircraft the IAF have:

o75 Pilatus PC-7 Mk II aircraft in service with the IAF (including the one which crashed).

oHAL Kiran, an intermediate jet-powered indigenously developed trainer aircraft,

oBAE Hawk, a British jet-powered advanced trainer aircraft.

Pilatus PC-7 Mk II

• Manufactured by: Pilatus Aircraft Ltd, an aerospace manufacturer located in Stans, Switzerland.
• About: It specialises in producing short take-off and landing aircraft, as well as trainer aircraft for air forces across the world.

oThe PC-7 is a low-wing, turbo-prop aircraft with tandem seating (the cadet sits in the front, the instructor behind him).

oThe Mk II version was introduced in the 1990s, with a newer airframe and more advanced avionics.