BELGIAN AIR FORCE F-16 JET CRASHES

[Nishan_101]

An F-16 fighter jet crashed in northern Belgium while on a training mission from the Kleine- Brogel air base near the town of Peer, the country’s military said. No one was injured.

The accident occurred at 3:01 p.m. local time about one kilometer from the Kleine-Brogel base, the military said today in an emailed statement. The pilot was able to eject and was found safe, it said. No one else was hurt in the incident, Belga newswire reported.

An investigation is under way and initial information indicates that a collision with birds could be the cause, according to the statement by the military.

At least 37 of Belgium's F-16 aircraft have crashed in almost 35 years of service in the country, according to Belga. The nation ordered 160 of the planes in the 1970s and 1980s, the newswire said.

The mayor of Peer activated the town’s municipal disaster plan after the accident, according to Belga.

The Kleine-Brogel air base is home to Belgium’s 10th Tactical Wing, which has taken part in international crisis missions in Bosnia, Kosovo, Libya and Afghanistan as well as NATO defense missions, according to its website.

 

[Jango]

37 in 35 years, that is abysmal!!!

 

[Last Hope]

It crashed four days ago.


The F-16 departed at 14.44 hours from Kleine Brogel AFB for a training flight. Upon his return the control tower fire noticed a fire coming from the back of the jet during a low fly-over. The pilot managed to turn away and eject.

He landed safely by parachute, though he became stuck in a tree. Around 15.55h the pilot was freed by local rescue services.

Right after crash the jet fighter caught fire, which resulted in heavy smoke. Residents were therefor asked to keep windows and doors closed.

The last crash of a Belgian F-16 dates from 2005 when Cdt. Fabrice Massaux crashed in the North Sea near the Dutch island 'Vlieland'. Unfortunately the pilot did not survive.

[Update] The pilot, Jean Francois Van Cranem (24) was only slightly injured and just complained about shoulder pain. The pilot was still in training, but had almost completed that. He had over 500 hours of flying experience of which 132 hours in an F-16.

This was the unit that crashed: