Seoni (MP), May 30 (PTI): A trainer aircraft overturned while landing at Suktara airstrip in the district on Friday morning but its trainee woman pilot was safe, the police said.

The aircraft flipped over due to a faulty landing, said a police official.

The airstrip is 22 km from the Seoni district headquarters.

The trainee woman pilot who was flying the aircraft alone did not suffer any injuries, said the official.

While the airstrip is maintained by the Madhya Pradesh Public Works Department, it is used by Delhi-based Red Bird Aviation Company to run a pilot training school.

District collector Sanskriti Jain said the concerned department has been asked to conduct an inquiry, after which the exact cause of the accident will become clear.

Employees of the Red Bird Aviation Company emptied the fuel tank of the aircraft immediately after the incident. A major tragedy was averted as the aircraft did not catch fire during the crash-landing, said the police official.

Barghat Sub Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) Lalit Ghatre said the employees of Red Bird Aviation Company did not inform the police about the incident which took place under Kurai police station limits.

They informed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's Bhopal office which in turn alerted the police. The police then contacted the company's airstrip manager Santosh Sanodia and obtained details, Ghatre said.

When contacted for his comments, Sanodia refused to speak.

Meanwhile, a DGCA team will soon reach Suktara airstrip and prepare a report after an inspection, the police official said.

According to preliminary information, the trainee pilot tried to land the aircraft with the front landing gear instead of the rear one, due to which the aircraft went out of control and overturned, officials said.

Flights of trainee aircraft from Suktara airstrip have been stopped for the time being, they added.

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Moscow (PTI): Russian President Vladimir Putin is making all possible efforts to de-escalate the crisis in the Gulf and is in close contact with the regional leaders as Iran is retaliating with massive strikes on the US facilities and infrastructure on their territories, the Kremlin said on Tuesday. 

The US and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on Saturday, assassinating 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, alongside family members, including his daughter and grandchildren. Since then, Iran has targeted multiple US bases in the surrounding Gulf States.

"Putin will certainly make every effort to facilitate at least a minor easing of tensions. In this regard, we discussed with virtually all of our interlocutors yesterday," the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"Taking advantage of the dialogue we maintain with the Iranian leadership, (President) Putin will convey his deep concern regarding the strikes on their infrastructure to our colleagues in Iran," he added.

According to the Kremlin, Putin spoke by telephone with leaders of  Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia.

In his telephonic conversation with Crown Prince and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, Putin discussed the escalating situation in the region as a result of the American-Israeli armed aggression against Iran.

“Both sides expressed serious concern over the real risks of escalation of the conflict, which has already affected several Arab countries and is fraught with catastrophic consequences. In this context, Vladimir Putin underscored the urgent need to resolve the current extremely dangerous situation through political and diplomatic means,” the Kremlin said.

On Monday, Putin also had telephonic contacts with the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, who currently chairs the Gulf Cooperation Council,  Emir of the State of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

  “Exchange of views was held regarding the unprecedented escalation around Iran as a result of US and Israeli aggression, which is bringing the entire region to the brink of a full-scale war with unpredictable consequences. Sides underscored the need for a swift cessation of hostilities to prevent the situation from spiralling completely out of control and to return it to a political and diplomatic framework,” the Kremlin said.

  The current developments, in particular, threaten the security of many Arab states with which Russia maintains friendly relations.

Given this, President Putin reaffirmed Russia's readiness to use all available means to actively contribute to stabilising the situation in the region, the Kremlin said, adding that contacts with the Gulf leaders will continue.