Bangladesh Air Force Plane Crashes into School, Killing at Least 19

In a horrifying disaster that has shocked the world, a Bangladesh Air Force fighter jet spiraled out of the sky Monday and crashed directly into an active school campus in the heart of Dhaka, killing at least 19 and leaving dozens of children severely burned.

The Chinese-made F-7 BGI, a military training aircraft based on the Cold War-era MiG-21, slammed into Milestone School and College in the Uttara district just before noon local time, igniting a massive fireball that tore through classrooms packed with students.

“We were in class. There was a roar, then an explosion—everything went black,” said Rezaul Islam, a teacher at Milestone, in an emotional interview with the BBC. “The building is full of holes. Children were screaming. It’s like a war zone.”

Social media was flooded with gut-wrenching images: charred wreckage, shattered concrete, and wounded children being carried away by frantic rescuers. Some victims were trapped under debris for hours as fire crews battled both flames and twisted wreckage.

A training aircraft has crashed in Uttara, #Dhaka. The incident occurred this afternoon (Monday) in the Milestone College area of Uttara.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), a Bangladesh Air Force F-7 BGI training aircraft crashed in Uttara. The aircraft… pic.twitter.com/DeivlfQI7o

— Basherkella – বাঁশেরকেল্লা (@basherkella) July 21, 2025

🇧🇩🚨🚨 BREAKING 🚨🚨
Training aircraft crashed at Uttara Milestone College….!#Bangladesh #Dhaka pic.twitter.com/M9f0GbPC2f

— Huda (@faisalhuda_) July 21, 2025

The school issued an urgent plea on Facebook for blood donations, warning local hospitals were running dry amid the mass casualty event. “We need O-positive, A-negative—everything. Please go to the nearest hospital if you can help,” the post read.

Emergency rooms in Dhaka quickly overflowed. Dr. Shawon Bin Rahman, a trauma surgeon at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, confirmed his team had already received 30 victims—all with critical burns.

“Most of the injured are children. Their bodies are scorched. We are doing everything we can,” he said grimly.

Bangladesh’s interim Prime Minister Muhammad Yunus declared a state of national mourning, calling the crash “a moment of profound sorrow for the entire nation.” In a statement posted in Bengali, he said the tragedy had left an “irreparable loss” to families and the Air Force alike.

He added that a full investigation would begin immediately and promised support for the victims and their families. “Every agency is on high alert. We are mobilizing all available resources to save lives,” Yunus said.

Monday’s crash marks the latest in a series of disturbing failures involving the F-7 fighter jets used by Bangladesh for pilot training.

Just last month, an F-7 plunged into the Bay of Bengal during a training mission. In 2018, another crashed in Tangail, central Bangladesh, killing the pilot.

The F-7, manufactured by China’s Chengdu Aircraft Corporation, has long been criticized for its outdated design. Derived from the 1960s-era Soviet MiG-21, the aircraft has been prone to technical malfunctions, raising urgent questions about its continued use.

“How many more crashes before someone pulls the plug on these relics?” asked one outraged Dhaka resident on X (formerly Twitter).

Officials from Bangladesh’s Inter Services Public Relations Directorate (ISPR) have yet to confirm what caused the crash. Unconfirmed reports suggest the pilot may have ejected seconds before impact, but this remains under investigation.

Authorities have sealed off the campus as forensic teams search through the rubble. Helicopters continue to circle overhead while military and civilian first responders comb the scorched site.

As night fell on Dhaka, the air was still thick with smoke—and grief. Milestone School and College, once a place of learning, now stands as the site of one of the deadliest peacetime disasters in recent Bangladeshi history.

“This isn’t just a crash,” said one parent outside the hospital, his voice cracking. “This is our worst nightmare.”