Pilot killed after two Eurofighter jets collide in mid-air and crash in Germany

Pilot killed after two Eurofighter jets collide in mid-air and crash in Germany

Both pilots had ejected from their aircraft but only one survived

A pilot has been killed after two Eurofighter warplanes collided in mid-air and crashed in Germany.

A second pilot managed to parachute to safety before the German air force jets crashed near the Laage military base in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on Monday.

Both pilots had ejected from their aircraft, according to a third pilot who witnessed the accident.

One of the pilots was later rescued from the top of a tree but the other was found dead on the ground.

"This is a sad day for our air force," German defence minister Ursula Von Der Leyen told reporters near the crash site.

"We lost a soldier in a flight accident. Our thoughts are with his family and his comrades."

The jets collided about 20 minutes after they took off, the defence minister added.

An armed forces spokesman said it was too early to say anything about the circumstances of the crash, and recovery

teams were searching for the black box flight recorders.

The crash reportedly happened shortly before 2pm local time (1pm UK time) near Lake Muritz, about 62 miles north of Berlin.

Footage posted online showed two plumes of smoke at separate crash sites, while it was reported there were forest fires on the ground.

Police warned the public not to approach potentially dangerous wreckage from the planes and firefighters were deployed to tackle blazes caused by the crash.

The German air force said the jets were based in Laage, near the Baltic sea port of Rostock, which trains all pilots flying Germany's 140 Eurofighters. </s> Two Eurofighter jets crash after mid-air collision in Germany

Two Eurofighter jets crash after mid-air collision in Germany

Two Eurofighter warplanes have collided in mid-air and crashed in Germany - with both pilots managing to use their ejector seats.

The German air force confirmed its jets crashed near the Laage military base in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

"Together with a third Eurofighter they were flying an Air Combat Mission," the German force tweeted.

"The pilot of the third Eurofighter observed the collision and reported that two parachutes descended to the ground."

The crash reportedly happened shortly before 2pm local time (1pm UK time) near Lake Muritz, about 62 miles north of Berlin.

Footage posted online showed two plumes of smoke at separate crash sites, while it was reported there were forest fires on the ground.

Police in Neubrandenburg said one of the pilots was found alive in a forest, while the search is continuing for the other pilot.

Police warned the public not to approach potentially dangerous wreckage from the planes and firefighters were deployed to tackle blazes caused by the crash.

The German air force said the jets were based in Laage, near the Baltic sea port of Rostock. </s> German police have found a body near a crash site in the north-east of the country after two Eurofighter Typhoon jets operated by the military collided during a training exercise.

Both pilots ejected after the collision, which took place at about 2pm on Monday over Lake Drewitz in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, about 175km (109 miles) north-west of Berlin.

One of the pilots was found alive, hanging in a tree canopy. Public broadcaster NDR later reported the second pilot had died. Police confirmed only that they had discovered a body.

The two planes went to ground about 10km apart, one inside a forest and the other on a field on the edge of some woodland.

According to Germany’s air force, the pilots were part of a trio of Eurofighters flying a mission out of Laage, near Rostock.

All three planes were part of the Tactical Air Force Wing 73 – known as Steinhoff – a fighter wing that specialises in general air defence and is the chief training centre for Eurofighter pilots in Germany.

The pilot of the third Eurofighter witnessed the collision and said he had seen two parachutes ejected from the planes.

In a press statement, the Luftwaffe denied rumours that the two jets had been armed with explosives, but nonetheless told the public to stay away from the crash sites.

Germany’s defence minister, Ursula von der Leyen, of Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union, and Lorenz Caffier, the interior minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, are expected to give a statement near the crash site later this afternoon. </s> A pilot has been killed after two Eurofighter jets collided mid-air in northern Germany.

The jets were taking part in an air combat mission with a third Eurofighter plane, the German air force said.

Both pilots ejected successfully and parachuted to the ground. One was later found alive in a forest, police officers said.

But officers told broadcaster N-TV that the other pilot had been killed.

The pilot of the third jet observed and reported the collision, the German air force said.

A third pilot saw two parachutes descending to the ground after the crash in Mecklenburg Western Pomerania state.

Ostseewelle radio reported that the two Eurofighter jets collided shortly before 2pm (10pm AEST) on Monday near Lake Mueritz, about 100 kilometres north of Berlin.

The jets, belonging to the German armed forces, crashed near the Laage military base in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on Monday, the German air force said on Twitter.

“Together with a third Eurofighter they were flying an Air Combat Mission,” the German force tweeted.

“The pilot of the third Eurofighter observed the collision and reported that two parachutes descended to the ground.”

Police in Neubrandenburg said one of the pilots was found alive in a forest. The search is continuing for the other pilot.

Ostseewelle radio, which first reported the crash, posted a video sent in by one of its listeners which showed two plumes of smoke rising from separate crash sites at some distance from each other.

Both pilots of the Eurofighters — made by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo — had been able to activate their ejection seats, a spokesman from the air force’s Squadron 73 said.

Police warned the public not to approach potentially dangerous wreckage from the planes. Firefighters were deployed to tackle any blazes caused by the crash. </s> Two Eurofighter Typhoon fighters of the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) on Monday crashed into each other during a combat training mission killing one of the pilots. The unarmed Typhoons crashed over a lake in Nossentiner Hutte in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

According to the BBC, one Typhoon jet crashed into a forest near the village of Jabel after the mid-air collision and the other crashed near a village about 10 km (6 miles) away, the interior ministry in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania said. A third pilot in another Typhoon fighter witnessed the two jets collide and also reported seeing two parachutes.

German police cordoned off the crash area immediately as rescue teams rushed to the lake. A German Air Force spokesperson of the Steinhoff Tactical Air Force Wing 73 squadron in Laage where the two ill-fated jets were based said both pilots had ejected but one of them died while the other was found alive stuck in a tree, according to the sun.co.uk. The crash took place at around 2 pm local time (5:30 pm Indian Standard Time). 



An eyewitness claimed that a wing of one of the jets was shattered due to the impact while others added that they saw two ejector seats shooting out from the Typhoons.

According to European defence experts, it is the seventh fatal crash of the Eurofighter Typhoon since the aircraft entered active service with the air forces of European countries in August 2003. But Monday's crash is the first time two Typhoons, capable of flying at 1,550 miles per hour (2,495 kmph), have crashed into each other.

The £125 million supersonic twin-engine, canard-delta wing, multirole fighter has 13 external points to carry weapons. The jet is in service with United Kingdom's Royal Air Force, German Air Force, Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare), Spanish Air Force (Ejercito del Aire), Austrian Air Force, Kuwait Air Force, Royal Air Force of Oman, Qatar Air Force and Royal Saudi Air Force. </s> Two Eurofighter warplanes have crashed in northeast Germany after a mid-air collision but both pilots ejected.

A third pilot saw two parachutes descending to the ground after the crash in Mecklenburg Western Pomerania state.

Ostseewelle radio reported that the two Eurofighter jets collided shortly before 2 p.m. on Monday near Lake Mueritz, about 100 kilometres north of Berlin.

The jets, belonging to the German armed forces, crashed near the Laage military base in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on Monday, the German air force said on Twitter.

“Together with a third Eurofighter they were flying an Air Combat Mission,” the German force tweeted.

“The pilot of the third Eurofighter observed the collision and reported that two parachutes descended to the ground.”

Police in Neubrandenburg said one of the pilots was found alive in a forest. The search is continuing for the other pilot.

Ostseewelle radio, which first reported the crash, posted a video sent in by one of its listeners which showed two plumes of smoke rising from separate crash sites at some distance from each other.

Both pilots of the Eurofighters — made by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo — had been able to activate their ejection seats, a spokesman from the air force’s Squadron 73 said.

Police warned the public not to approach potentially dangerous wreckage from the planes. Firefighters were deployed to tackle any blazes caused by the crash. </s> Two Eurofighter jets belonging to the German Air Force have crashed in the Müritz area in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern following a mid-air collision.

The incident occurred when three Eurofighters from the Taktisches Luftwaffengeschwader 73 (TLG73) ‘Steinhoff’ were taking part in an air combat mission. TLG73 ‘Steinhoff’ is a fighter wing of the German Air Force.

In an official Twitter post, the airforce’s Team Luftwaffe stated that two of the three jets were involved in the collision and the pilots managed to eject from the jets using parachutes. However, only one of them survived the crash. The other pilot was declared dead by the airforce.

The third pilot witnessed the collision and confirmed that the two pilots deployed their parachutes to eject from the aircraft.



At this stage, the cause of the collision remains unclear. Team Luftwaffe noted that the Eurofighters, based at Laage military base, were not armed.



Germany Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen rushed to the site of the accident. Von der Leyen said: “I thank all the forces for helping us in this hour of need. And I thank the people for their prudence in accompanying this terrible event.”

Rescue teams attended to the pilot who safely ejected from the fighter jet and was found in the canopy of a tree.

The crash comes days after various stakeholders of the Eurofighter programme signed contracts to study the long-term evolution of the aircraft.

The multirole Eurofighter Typhoon is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo under a multinational collaboration among the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain.

Other countries operating the fighter aircraft include Austria, Italy, the UK, Spain and Saudi Arabia. </s> Two German Air Force jets collided today while flying over a remote part of northern Germany, landing around six miles apart and causing forest fires.

Emergency services rushed to Fleesensee lake, near Malchow, where the crash happened between two Luftwaffe Eurofighter jets during an aerial combat exercise.

The pilots of each plane were able to eject, according to an Air Force spokesman who added one of them is still yet to be found. It is not clear whether the pilots ejected before or after impact.

Since the spokesman's announcement, at around 3.15 pm local time, one of the pilots was located alive and is in the care of emergency services.

'Together with a third Eurofighter they were flying an Air Combat Mission,' the German force tweeted. 'The pilot of the third Eurofighter observed the collision and reported that two parachutes descended to the ground.'

Eurofighters are made by Airbus, British company BAE Systems and also Leonardo.

SVZ in Germany reported that wreckage from the planes fell into inhabited areas over the north shore of the lake.

Police confirmed this, tweeting that people should stay away from 'dangerous debris' that has fallen in and around the municipality of Malchow.

Both aircraft belonged to the Air Force Squadron 73 'Steinhoff'. One went down in a wooded area in Schwerin near the village Jabel, according to the Interior Ministry.

The other went down south of the village Nossentiner, around six miles away. This is where one pilot was found alive.

Distressing pictures from the scene show thick plumes of smoke billowing into the air over the Fleesensee lake - which is in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

Reports state that the jets - based on the north coast of Germany close to Rostock - plummeted to the ground after they collided. It is not yet known the number of people injured in the incident, if any.

Witnesses told local media that the crash, which was at around 2 pm local time, caused a loud bang.

One person said that a wing broke away from the main body of one of the planes.

Attention has now turned to the search for the one remaining missing pilot and the forest fires caused as a result of the crash.

There is a large contingent of emergency responders at the scene according to reports.

Team Luftwaffe confirmed the news on their official Twitter page and also stated that the pilots were able to eject.

A third pilot witnessed and reported the crash, stating that he saw two parachutes deployed.

Interior Minister Lorenz Caffier (CDU) will fly to the scene to survey damage, according to his spokesman.

On 12 October 2017, a Spanish Air Force Eurofighter het crashed near its base at Los Llanos Albacete, Spain, when returning from the military parade for the Spanish National Day.

Captain Borja Aybar García, 34, died as a result of the incident. </s> TWO German Air Force fighter jets have collided over a remote part of the north of the country.

Emergency services have raced to northern Fleesensee, near Malchow, following the crash, which is believed to have involved a pair of Eurofighters.

It is the first time two of the £125 million Typhoons have been lost in a single incident.

Pictures show smoke billowing into the sky above the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern region.

The number of injuries is not yet known.

A spokesman for Air Force squadron in nearby Laage said both pilots had hit the ejector seat but were yet to be found.

The smash happened at around 2pm local time (1pm BST).

One said a wing broke away from the first jet's main fuselage.

Others said they saw the ejector seats shoot out from the fighters.

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Two German Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets collide in mid-air and crash near Lake Müritz in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Both pilots are able to eject before the crash, but only one survives.