In South Korea, fighter pilots clashed over a photo taken during a flight
South Korea has released details of an incident involving F-15K fighter jets that collided in mid-air while flying, reportedly because the pilots were attempting to take photos and videos. The incident occurred back in 2021, but the circumstances only came to light following the findings of an investigation.
The BBC reports on this.
According to the investigation, one of the pilots was on his final flight as part of the unit and decided to capture the moment on camera. While returning to base, he began taking photos from the cockpit using his personal cell phone.
The other pilot, noticing this, asked his colleague to film his fighter jet. “The pilot of the other fighter jet, noticing this, asked his colleague to film the second aircraft,” the investigation report states.
After that, the pilot taking the photos abruptly pulled the plane up and performed a maneuver to improve the angle. “After that, the pilot taking the photos abruptly pulled the plane up higher and performed a maneuver to get a better shot,” the report notes.
As a result of the dangerous close encounter, one of the fighter jets attempted to dive sharply to avoid a collision, but a collision still occurred. Both aircraft sustained damage: one had a damaged wing, and the other had a damaged tail stabilizer. The pilots were unharmed.
The cost of repairing the military equipment amounted to 880 million South Korean won, which is nearly 600,000 U.S. dollars.
Following the incident, one of the pilots was suspended from duty. He later left the military and began working for a commercial airline. Initially, he was required to pay the full cost of repairs, but after an appeal, the fine was reduced to 88 million won.
Auditors concluded that part of the responsibility lies with the country’s air force, as it had not properly regulated the use of personal devices during flights. The report also noted that the practice of taking photos during important missions was quite common among pilots at the time.
As a reminder, starting Monday night, April 13, pilots from Germany’s largest airlines, including Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Eurowings, launched another wave of protests.
