Two men, both from the Israeli Air Force, were killed when a light aircraft crashed near Kibbutz Mishmar Hanegev in southern Israel early Tuesday afternoon.
According to initial reports, the pilot of the Grob G-120 "Snunit" (Swallow) had been trying to execute an emergency landing prior to the crash. The Israel Defense Forces confirmed later on Tuesday that the pilot was an IDF officer who was an instructor in the Pilot's Course as part of his reserve duty while the other man was a cadet in the Israeli Air Force Pilot's Course. The IDF said it was unclear if the cause of the accident was human error or technical malfunction.
"Around 11:35 a.m. the aircraft, which was on a training mission, crashed in an open space in the Negev," the IDF said in a statement. "The instructor pilot served as major in the reserves and as an F-16 squadron leader. The second fatality was a cadet who had joined the Pilot's Course four months ago."
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Footage from the scene showed a large contingent of first responders and parts of the aircraft scattered across a field.
Video: Liora Ben Tzur, Radio Darom
Yanki Weinberg, a volunteer medic with Hazolah who arrived at the scene, said, "We got to the site and saw the plane go up in fire. It crashed in a field and went up in flames. After we put the fire out, we saw tough sights. We saw parts of the plane scattered across the field."
Another medic, Youssef Abu Jaffar, said, "Two young men were killed when a light aircraft crashed. Sadly, they were declared dead at the scene."
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