imalko
Chief Master Sergeant
Thursday 9/23/2010, ZAGREB, Croatia - Two Croatian MiG-21 fighter jets crashed Thursday during an exercise, but both pilots ejected safely, the defence ministry said. A person on the ground was wounded by a flying object.
The two planes "had an accident in the air and both fell down," the ministry said without specifying whether they collided.
Minister Branko Vukelic said an investigation into the cause of the accident is under way.
The two jets were participating in an air force exercise near Plaski in central Croatia when they crashed at around 12:50 p.m. Both pilots landed safely, contacted their headquarters and were admitted to the hospital with light injuries, Vukelic said.
A woman working in a field 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away from the crash site was wounded by a flying object and was undergoing surgery in the local clinic, the state-run news agency Hina said.
The crash is the first since Croatia joined NATO last year.
Vukelic said Croatia still has six MiG-21s and its airspace defense is not threatened by the accident.
According to the latest news I've read today, the cause of the crash was indeed a mid-air collision during an exercise. This is a great loss for Croatian Air Force, because they had until now some 12 MiG-21s out of which only 4-6 were airworthy at any time and others grounded due to the maintenance. Sad day for our neighbors, but at least no lives were lost. Hope all injured will have full recovery.
The two planes "had an accident in the air and both fell down," the ministry said without specifying whether they collided.
Minister Branko Vukelic said an investigation into the cause of the accident is under way.
The two jets were participating in an air force exercise near Plaski in central Croatia when they crashed at around 12:50 p.m. Both pilots landed safely, contacted their headquarters and were admitted to the hospital with light injuries, Vukelic said.
A woman working in a field 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away from the crash site was wounded by a flying object and was undergoing surgery in the local clinic, the state-run news agency Hina said.
The crash is the first since Croatia joined NATO last year.
Vukelic said Croatia still has six MiG-21s and its airspace defense is not threatened by the accident.
According to the latest news I've read today, the cause of the crash was indeed a mid-air collision during an exercise. This is a great loss for Croatian Air Force, because they had until now some 12 MiG-21s out of which only 4-6 were airworthy at any time and others grounded due to the maintenance. Sad day for our neighbors, but at least no lives were lost. Hope all injured will have full recovery.
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