Aero India 2019: Huge plumes of black smoke could be seen in the sky near the Yelahanka air base Highlights Nearly 300 vehicles were destroyed in a major fire in Bengaluru. Officials said the cause of the fire could be a cigarette. Huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen in the sky. Nearly 300 vehicles were destroyed in a major fire that broke out this afternoon in the parking area of the Yelahanka Air Force station in Bengaluru, where the 12th edition of Aero India is underway. No casualties were reported. Huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen in the sky near the Yelahanka air base in north Bengaluru, where about a hundred aircraft are parked for the biennial Aero India 2019 event. Senior police officer MN Reddi said the fire spread rapidly due to dry grass and strong winds. Hundreds of vehicles, including two-wheelers and cars, were seen parked in files in the open ground, surrounded by fire. The Karnataka fire department tweeted a video of the blaze that rapidly spread in the parking area. The massive fire caused panic among locals and visitors on the fourth day of Aero India. The mega show was suspended briefly because of the fire. Officials said the cause of the fire could be a lit cigarette that was disposed on the grass in the open field. On Tuesday, a day before the opening of the Aero India show, two aircraft of the IAF''s aerobatic team Surya Kiran had crashed, after grazing each other mid-air, near here. A pilot was killed and two others were injured in the accident. Aero India 2019: The fire in the parking area caused panic among the visitors. Thousands of visitors are expected are attending the five-day biennial event which started on Wednesday and will conclude tomorrow. Badminton star PV Sindhu took a flight in Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas at air show earlier today. On Thursday, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had flown the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH).<doc-sep>Bengaluru: Around 300 cars, parked outside the ongoing Aero India show in Bengaluru, was gutted on Saturday after dry grass caught fire. The fire added to the gloom surrounding the biennial airshow, which began on a sad note after two Hawk aircraft, part of the Indian Air Force (IAF) Surya Kiran acrobatics team, crashed, killing one pilot and grounding its entire performance for the first three days of the show that kicked off on Wednesday. "#AeroShowOpenParkingAreaFire. In all, 300 cars burnt in the fire incident. Fire fully extinguished now. 10 Fire Force and 5 other fire engines fought the fire under the leadership of Chief Fire Officer, West," M.N.Reddi, director-general, police, Fire & Emergency services, Home guards & civil defence and state disaster response force wrote on Twitter. "Today morning at around 1155hrs an unfortunate incident occurred, wherein fire broke out in one of the parking areas outside the venue of Aero India 2019," the IAF said in a statement. The IAF deployed rapid action forces and sent one helicopter to assist civil emergency services on the direction of the fire. The parking lot was outside the Air Force station premises. Though the exact extent of the damage is being ascertained, the police said no one was injured due to the fire. Thick smoke billowed from near the Yelhanka Air Force station on Saturday, bringing back memories of the Surya Kiran crash on Tuesday, when two fighter jets collided while practicing a tricky manoeuvre ahead of the airshow. "Afternoon air display continued on time. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to investigate the cause of the fire," the IAF said in its statement. Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint. Download our App Now! ! Topics<doc-sep>A blanket of thick black smoke engulfed the area causing panic among visitors. A major fire swept through the parking area of the Aero India event at the Yelahanka Air Force station in Bengaluru, gutting about 300 cars on Saturday, the penultimate day of Asia's premier air show. After the blaze put out, an incredible aerial image showed the incredible extent of damage. No casualties were reported in the fire, authorities said, adding the parking area was "far away" from the air force station. The 12th edition of the five-day air show went on unaffected by the fire incident, which came four days after two jets of Indian Air Force's aerobatic team Surya Kiran crashed, killing a pilot a day before the opening of the event. The scheduled morning aerobatic display was over before the fire broke out at around noon while the afternoon programme was unhindered, Defence Public Relations Officer H L Guruprasad said. The events slated for Sunday, the final day, would go ahead as planned, he said. A blanket of thick black smoke engulfed the area causing panic among locals and visitors to the Aero India event. Eyewitnesses said they heard repeated blasts as the fire spread. Car owners rushed to the spot after they received information about the incident. Firefighting services, rapid action force and National Disaster Response Force teams immediately reached the spot. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to investigate the cause of the fire, a Press Information Bureau (Defence Wing) release said. The "unfortunate incident" happened at around 11:55 AM, it said. (With inputs from PTI)<doc-sep>In a massive fire that broke out at a parking lot near the venue of the Aero India Show at Bengaluru, nearly 300 cars have been gutted. Thick smoke could be seen billowing upwards from the car parking near the Yelahanka Air base where the aero show is underway in Bengaluru. It is not yet clear how the fire broke out. The cars in the parking lot belonged to the people who had come to see the aero show. The flight display at the show as temporarily halted. As many as 10 fire tenders were dispatched and they managed to bring the blaze under control quickly by creating gaps between cars by removing adjacent cars. No planes are reported to have suffered any damage. DGP Fire, MN Reddi tweeted, “Totally about 100 cars burnt in the fire. Fire spread is controlled by creating a gap by removing adjacent cars. Fire under control now. No injuries or any harm to people reported. Likely cause: dry grass fire aided by heavy winds.” In a second tweet he wrote that nearly 300 cars had been gutted. #AeroShowOpenParkingAreaFire In all, 300 cars burnt in the fire incident. Fire fully extinguished now. 10 Fire Force and 5 other fire engines fought the fire under the leadership of Chief Fire Officer, West. — M.N.Reddi, IPS (@DGP_FIRE) February 23, 2019 The fire comes barely four days after a fatal mid-air crash had left a pilot of the Surya Kiran aerobatics team dead. Two other pilots suffered injuries in the mid-air collision during the rehearsal for the Aero India show. The aero show which began on Wednesday is scheduled to conclude on Sunday. Watch video:<doc-sep>
Aero India 2019: Huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen in the sky near the Yelahanka air base. Highlights The fire which started at 11:55 am has been brought under control Police said the fire spread rapidly due to dry grass and strong winds No planes took off from the airbase till the fire was completely doused Nearly 300 vehicles have been destroyed in a big fire at the parking lot of the venue of the air show in Bengaluru this afternoon. Officials say the cause of the fire could be a lit cigarette that was disposed on the grass in the open field. Huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen in the sky near the Yelahanka air base in north Bengaluru, where about a hundred aircraft are parked for the biennial Aero India 2019 event. Senior police officer MN Reddi said the fire spread rapidly due to dry grass and strong winds. Hundreds of vehicles, including two-wheelers and cars, were seen parked in files in the open ground, surrounded by fire. The fire, which started at 11:55 am, has been brought under control and no injuries have been reported. "Fire in the open field parking lot of aero show. Nearly 20 cars burnt. Fire fighting operations by Chief Fire Officer and 10 water tenders staff under way (sic)," Mr Reddi tweeted. The fire spread rapidly due to dry grass and strong winds A Defence Ministry statement said the parking area is located well away from the venue, on the other side of the highway. "IAF immediately launched one helicopter for aerial assessment, the helicopter assisted by providing effective directions to fight the fire. The fire was brought under control by deploying more than 12 fire fighting vehicles," the statement said. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to investigate the cause of fire, the Defence Ministry added. The air show was temporarily suspended once the fire spread and no planes took off from the airbase till the fire was completely doused. Today's incident comes less than a week after two jets of the Indian Air Force's Suryakiran Aerobatic Team crashed after a mid-air collision over the air base. One of the three pilots in the crash had died. The five-day air show started on Wednesday and will conclude tomorrow.