Pilot error identified as cause of Milestone School plane crash that killed 36 in Dhaka

The investigation has identified pilot error as the cause of the plane crash at Milestone School and College in the capital that killed 36 people.

Three months after the incident, on Wednesday afternoon, the investigation committee’s report on the crash was submitted to Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the state guesthouse Jamuna. The head of the investigation committee, Principal Staff Officer of the Armed Forces Division, Lieutenant General S M Kamrul Hasan, handed over the report.

Later, at a press conference held at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, the Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary, Shafiqul Alam, shared some findings and recommendations from the investigation report.

The Press Secretary said, “The main cause of the accident was the pilot’s flight error. While flying during a training session, the situation went beyond his control.”

On 21 July, a Bangladesh Air Force fighter jet crashed into Milestone School and College in Uttara’s Diabari area, killing 36 people, 28 of whom were students. The aircraft’s pilot, Flight Lieutenant Md. Taufiq Islam, was also killed.

The widely discussed incident prompted the interim government to form a nine-member investigation commission. The commission was tasked with determining the context, cause, responsibility, extent of damage, and other relevant aspects of the crash.

Citing the investigation report, the Press Secretary stated that the Milestone School building was not approved according to RAJUK’s building code. As per the code, the building was supposed to have at least three staircases, but it had only one in the middle. “If there had been three staircases, the number of casualties would have been lower,” he said. Based on the commission’s recommendations, the runways in Barishal and Bogura have been directed to be further expanded, the Press Secretary added.

On 21 July, a Bangladesh Air Force fighter jet crashed into Milestone School and College in Uttara’s Diabari area, killing 36 people, most of them students. The aircraft’s pilot, Flight Lieutenant Md. Taufiq Islam, also died in the crash.

The highly publicized incident led the interim government to form a nine-member investigation commission. The commission was instructed to identify the context, causes, responsibilities, damages, and other aspects related to the incident.