Stubenfliege 2
23rd Oct 2008, 15:34
A IDF Zukit (an Fouga Magister upgrade) training aircraft crashed after take off, killing itīs two occupants.
According to the IAF officials, it was the first Zukit / Fouga Magister crash since 30 years. The IAF has grounded the fleet until the reason of the crash is known.
Out of Haaretz.com
VIDEO / Crash involving reliable Zukit plane takes Air Force aback - Haaretz - Israel News (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1030533.html)
VIDEO / Crash involving reliable Zukit plane takes Air Force aback - Haaretz - Israel News (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1030533.html)
Last update - 01:58 23/10/2008
IAF cadet, instructor killed in training flight in Negev
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israel news
An Israel Air Force cadet and a flight instructor were killed during a training flight on Wednesday when their plane crashed near the Halutza Dunes in the Negev.
The deceased were identified as Capt. Matan Asa, 24, of Yavneh and Cadet Carmi Ilan, 19, of Herzliya.
In response to the accident, the air force has grounded all its Zukit training planes until an investigation into the accident is completed, lest the cause turn out to be a technical problem with the planes. The investigating committee, appointed by IAF Commander Maj. Gen. Ido Nehoshtan, is also looking into various other possibilities, such as human error.
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Nehoshtan also ordered all air force bases to begin the day on Thursday with a review of safety procedures.
During Wednesday's flight, the trainee pilots were supposed to fly their planes only a few dozen meters above the ground. The trainees had already been in the air for half an hour and were heading back to the Hatzerim base when the pilot of the lead plane suddenly saw one of the others crash and go up in flames.
He immediately notified the control tower, which sent out a helicopter-borne rescue crew. However, both of the plane's occupants were dead by the time the rescue crew arrived.
Air force sources said that there is no record of any distress call having been made from the plane before it crashed.
"The planes were flying in single file, one after the other, and when the leading plane turned in the direction of the base in preparation for landing, the pilot saw the crashed plane," said Col. Yochanan Locker, the air force chief of staff. "They did not hear any distress call over the communications network. Apparently, the whole incident occurred within a few seconds."
He noted that the crashed plane was still largely intact, which might make the investigation easier.
Air force sources said that Ilan, who began his pilot's course about 18 months ago, had already clocked many hours in the pilot's seat, and had been fully trained on all the plane's systems, though he was still in what is termed the "initial" phase of his training. Asa, the flight instructor, had until recently been a combat pilot flying F-16s, they noted.
The Zukit is the IAF's name for the French-made Fouga Magister. Israel initially acquired these planes in the late 1960s and used them as fighter jets, but in the early 1980s, they were removed from combat and converted into training planes. At that point, the IAF installed new engines and upgraded various other systems. Despite their age, the Zukits are considered reliable and easy to operate, and generations of Israeli pilots have been trained on them. However, the air force announced a few months ago that it intends to take them out of use at the start of next year. They will be replaced by American T-6 training planes.
The IAF is due to acquire its first five T-6 planes early next year, and another 10 by the end of 2009. One of the main differences between the Zukit and the T-6 is that the former has a jet engine while the latter has a piston engine.
Meanwhile, the IAF is also still investigating the crash of a Cobra assault helicopter about six weeks ago, and IAF sources said investigators are increasingly convinced that this accident was due to a technical failure. All of the IAF's Cobras have been grounded since the accident, in which two pilots were killed.
According to the IAF officials, it was the first Zukit / Fouga Magister crash since 30 years. The IAF has grounded the fleet until the reason of the crash is known.
Out of Haaretz.com
VIDEO / Crash involving reliable Zukit plane takes Air Force aback - Haaretz - Israel News (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1030533.html)
VIDEO / Crash involving reliable Zukit plane takes Air Force aback - Haaretz - Israel News (http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1030533.html)
Last update - 01:58 23/10/2008
IAF cadet, instructor killed in training flight in Negev
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israel news
An Israel Air Force cadet and a flight instructor were killed during a training flight on Wednesday when their plane crashed near the Halutza Dunes in the Negev.
The deceased were identified as Capt. Matan Asa, 24, of Yavneh and Cadet Carmi Ilan, 19, of Herzliya.
In response to the accident, the air force has grounded all its Zukit training planes until an investigation into the accident is completed, lest the cause turn out to be a technical problem with the planes. The investigating committee, appointed by IAF Commander Maj. Gen. Ido Nehoshtan, is also looking into various other possibilities, such as human error.
Advertisement
Nehoshtan also ordered all air force bases to begin the day on Thursday with a review of safety procedures.
During Wednesday's flight, the trainee pilots were supposed to fly their planes only a few dozen meters above the ground. The trainees had already been in the air for half an hour and were heading back to the Hatzerim base when the pilot of the lead plane suddenly saw one of the others crash and go up in flames.
He immediately notified the control tower, which sent out a helicopter-borne rescue crew. However, both of the plane's occupants were dead by the time the rescue crew arrived.
Air force sources said that there is no record of any distress call having been made from the plane before it crashed.
"The planes were flying in single file, one after the other, and when the leading plane turned in the direction of the base in preparation for landing, the pilot saw the crashed plane," said Col. Yochanan Locker, the air force chief of staff. "They did not hear any distress call over the communications network. Apparently, the whole incident occurred within a few seconds."
He noted that the crashed plane was still largely intact, which might make the investigation easier.
Air force sources said that Ilan, who began his pilot's course about 18 months ago, had already clocked many hours in the pilot's seat, and had been fully trained on all the plane's systems, though he was still in what is termed the "initial" phase of his training. Asa, the flight instructor, had until recently been a combat pilot flying F-16s, they noted.
The Zukit is the IAF's name for the French-made Fouga Magister. Israel initially acquired these planes in the late 1960s and used them as fighter jets, but in the early 1980s, they were removed from combat and converted into training planes. At that point, the IAF installed new engines and upgraded various other systems. Despite their age, the Zukits are considered reliable and easy to operate, and generations of Israeli pilots have been trained on them. However, the air force announced a few months ago that it intends to take them out of use at the start of next year. They will be replaced by American T-6 training planes.
The IAF is due to acquire its first five T-6 planes early next year, and another 10 by the end of 2009. One of the main differences between the Zukit and the T-6 is that the former has a jet engine while the latter has a piston engine.
Meanwhile, the IAF is also still investigating the crash of a Cobra assault helicopter about six weeks ago, and IAF sources said investigators are increasingly convinced that this accident was due to a technical failure. All of the IAF's Cobras have been grounded since the accident, in which two pilots were killed.