The second body of the two pilots who steered their two Sukhoi Su-22 fighter jets that crashed off south-central Vietnam a fortnight ago was found on Thursday, an air officer said the same day.

>> Body of Vietnam pilot recovered, 12 days after fighter jet crash The body of 34-year-old Captain Nguyen Anh Tu was found by frogmen from the Ministry of Defense off the Phu Quy Island of Binh Thuan province on yesterday afternoon, said Senior Lieutenant Colonel Pham Duc Doanh, commander of Air Regiment 937. Captain Tu had steered one of the two Russian-made jets that disappeared during a training exercise over the waters between Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces, about 15km north of the island, on April 16. Tu’s body has been brought to the Phu Quy Hospital and is expected to be taken by helicopter to the Military Hospital 175 in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday, Doanh said.   A member of Tu’s family told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Thursday that a memorial service for the deceased will be held on May 3. “We are very heartbroken over the death of Tu. However, the recovery of his body, which has resulted from great efforts made by search and rescue forces, has relieved our suffering,” the member said. Three days ago, on April 28, the body of Lieutenant Colonel Le Van Nghia, who had piloted the other jet, was found in the same waters. Nghia was vice commander of Air Regiment 937. During the past 15 days, frogmen and other search and rescue forces have also found and recovered many broken parts of the two jets. Air traffic controllers lost contact with both pilots at around 11:00 am on April 16, when they were separately piloting the fighter jets over the above-mentioned waters. These two jets might have collided with each other during their bombing drills, a source told Tuoi Tre. Lieutenant General Vo Van Tuan, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army, commented that the two aircraft might have exploded before they crashed into the sea. The two deceased officers were among the skilled airmen of Air Regiment 937, said Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Thanh, political commissar of the Vietnamese Air Defense and Air Force. Lieutenant Colonel Nghia and Captain Tu had over 1,400 and 400 flying hours under their belt, respectively, Thanh said.

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