New information is continually emerging about the Gripen crash in Szolnok (central-eastern Hungary), which occurred Monday morning on the grounds of the local helicopter base, Világgazdaság reported.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced on social media this morning that a Gripen fighter jet belonging to the Hungarian Defense Forces had crashed near Szolnok for unknown reasons and that the pilot had ejected safely. The prime minister also reported that, based on preliminary reports, no one was injured and no damage was caused to civilian infrastructure.
Shortly thereafter, the defense minister announced that the pilot of the crashed Gripen was alive. Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi stated that the pilot of the fighter jet that crashed in Szolnok had ejected and had done everything possible to land on Air Force grounds. He added that, based on the available information, no one had been injured and that the investigation into the accident is underway. The politician stated that he would be heading to the crash site together with the Chief of the General Staff in order to provide detailed information about the incident.
According to the National Emergency Medical Service, the pilot of the crashed Gripen is in stable condition.
He was transported to the hospital by rescue helicopter for observation.
An expert who spoke to Magyar Nemzet ruled out the possibility of pilot error based on the initial information. As he said, it could have been a technical malfunction, or the plane may have struck a bird. He emphasized, however, that the investigation will determine the exact cause.
The mayor of Szolnok also commented on the Gripen accident. Mihály Györfy explained that while the Gripen base is primarily located in Kecskemét, the facility in Szolnok is frequently used for training purposes. He declined to confirm the report that not one, but two Gripen jets had been flying over the helicopter base.
Ihsn.hu, which also has expertise in military aviation, reported the following:
The pilot of one of the two aircraft in the standby fleet detected a failure in the hydraulic system and attempted an emergency landing, but one of the aircraft’s landing gears failed to deploy,
prompting the pilot to eject; the aircraft crashed at the southern end of the runway at Szolnok Airport and caught fire.”
Blikk has published further details regarding the circumstances of the accident. According to the portal, the Gripen crashed while fully loaded with combat equipment, including missiles and ammunition, as well as a full auxiliary fuel tank. Based on their information, the Gripen fighter jets were returning in formation to the base in Kecskemét following an alert. More precisely, that was the plan, but they did not manage to make it back.
Your plane is on fire—jump out!”
shouted one of the Gripen pilots, making it clear to his colleague that the situation was serious. The pilot then attempted to turn toward Szolnok to make an emergency landing at the airfield there, but he was unable to do so.
More and more flames were shooting out from the engine area, so he decided to make an emergency ejection. No wonder, since they were returning from an alert flight—meaning the aircraft was loaded with missiles, fully fueled, and also had an auxiliary fuel tank on board. The pilot remained in the aircraft until the very last moment to safely maneuver the burning Gripen away from populated areas, and ejected over a military base, where the fighter jet eventually crashed. It is not known whether the missiles exploded upon impact; in any case, the wreckage continued to burn for a long time.
With the arrival of the two new aircraft, the Hungarian fleet now consists of eighteen Gripen jets.Continue reading
Via Világgazdaság, Magyar Nemzet; Featured photo: Honvedelem.hu (Illustration)
The post Gripen Fighter Jet Crashes at Szolnok Military Base appeared first on Hungary Today.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire
Merci pour votre intérêt pour Cocardes !