The wreckage of a crashed fighter aircraft possible from the World War II era has been discovered buried underneath an agricultural field some five kilometers from Lalmonirhat Airport.
A team comprised of police and Air Force officials, led by Lalmonirhat district administration, has been carrying out an excavation of the wreckage following its discovery on Saturday morning.
The excavation team has already recovered the fighter plane’s main propeller, two landing gears, oil burning exhaust, ammunition, five guns and fragments of the aircraft.
However, Air Force officials present at the scene could not confirm the origin of the aircraft based on the findings till now.
The excavation team is also looking for the cockpit and the skeletal remains of the pilot from the wreckage.
A team comprised of police and Air Force officials, led by Lalmonirhat district administration carries out an excavation of the wreckage following its discovery on Saturday, October 17, 2020 | Dhaka Tribune
Lalmonirhat airport, which was constructed between 1939-1940 over a massive area in Mahendranagar and Harati union of sadar upazila, was in use during the second world war. The airport, however, remained abandoned following country’s independence.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Lalmonirhat Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Shah Alam said: “One worker named Shohel Mia found some bullets when he and others workers were digging an agricultural field owned by farmer Rezaul Haq at Guriadh area under ward 2 of Gokunda union of Sadar upazila. Later, the land owner informed the police of the findings on Friday afternoon”.
A team comprised of police and Air Force officials, led by Lalmonirhat district administration carries out an excavation of the wreckage following its discovery on Saturday, October 17, 2020 | Dhaka Tribune
“We informed officials of Bangladesh Air Force in Lalmonirhat on Friday night after Sub-Inspector Hafizur Rahman confirmed the findings after visiting the spot,” he added.
“On Saturday morning, an Air Force team together with police and locals started excavating the site in presence of Nezarat Deputy Collector TM Rahsan Kabir. The excavation is going on.”
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Flight Lieutenant Mahmudul Hasan Masud, in-charge of maintenance and supervision unit of Bangladesh Air Force at Lalmonirhat, said: “The excavation is going on. We have already recovered several pieces of the aircraft. We cannot say anything before the recovered items are thoroughly examined.”
