Key takeaways:
- The F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed around 2:30 p.m. local time Tuesday at Spangdahlem Air Base in western Germany, and the pilot ejected and was receiving medical care.
- Germany’s air traffic control authority said four F-16s were in a training exercise, and the crashed jet was believed to have gone down while returning to Spangdahlem on approach.
- Spangdahlem hosts the U.S. Air Force’s 52nd Fighter Wing and an F-16 squadron of about 20 aircraft that supports U.S. Air Force and NATO missions.
A U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jet crashed Tuesday at Spangdahlem Air Base in western Germany, injuring the pilot, the American military said.
The pilot ejected from the aircraft and was receiving medical care, according to a statement from the U.S. air base. The F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed around 2:30 p.m. local time, and the cause is under investigation.
Emergency response personnel were at the scene after the crash. The local German district where Spangdahlem is located said fire and emergency teams responded to the incident.
Germany’s air traffic control authority said four F-16s had been taking part in a training exercise before the crash. “Two were still in the training area, while two were returning to Spangdahlem air base. One of these two jets is believed to have crashed while on approach,” the authority said, according to The Guardian. It said the remaining F-16s landed at the U.S. Air Force base in Ramstein.
Spangdahlem is home to an F-16 fighter jet squadron with about 20 aircraft, the German news agency dpa reported. The squadron supports U.S. Air Force and NATO missions worldwide and is the centerpiece of the base.
The installation hosts the U.S. Air Force’s 52nd Fighter Wing, which provides airpower and support for NATO operations in Europe and beyond. The base has about 5,000 military and civilian employees, plus their family members, according to the latest figures, and employs between 700 and 800 Germans.
The U.S. Air Force has maintained a presence at Spangdahlem since the mid-1950s. Along with Ramstein near Kaiserslautern in southwestern Germany, Spangdahlem is considered one of the most important airfields for the U.S. military in the region.
Tuesday’s crash came less than a week after another F-16 went down in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. In that incident, the pilot, a member of the 149th Fighter Wing of the Texas National Guard, ejected and was in stable condition, a spokesperson said. The Texas Military Department said the pilot had been on a routine training mission when the crash occurred.
The Michigan crash remains under investigation. No injuries on the ground were reported in that incident.
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