Alarm from the fall of the sixth F-16

It’s scary ejecting from the cockpit of a fighter jet when the aircraft is on fire or when the aircraft is disobeying the pilot’s commands. Coordination of movements in the cockpit, good training and above all composure are required. Something that, as it turned out, the young F-16 block52+ pilot had that crashed yesterday in a sea area on the island of Psathoura, between Halkidiki and Alonissos.

The alarm that was sent yesterday to the Armed Forces did not only concern the location of the sergeant major, but also what state he would be in with his health. The end of the alert was signaled when the commander of the 110th Fighter Wing, where the F-16 belonged, radioed the lieutenant commander, indicating he was conscious, as a Super Puma transported him to the 251st Air Force as a precaution.

The aircraft was one of the most modern at the disposal of the Air Force, it was probably making its last flights, since in a few days it would land at the EAB to be upgraded to a Viper. It is the sixth Block52+ F-16 we have lost since 2003, when we received 60 from the US. The first fighter we lost belonged to the hero Kostas Iliakis. This was followed by the downing of two F-16 block52+ fighters that collided with each other south of Crete in an air combat exercise. It was perhaps one of the scariest moments of the Air Force. In fact, the misfortune of the captain of a fighter was great. While opening his parachute normally, he was pierced by shrapnel and killed. Another F-16 block52+ went down after a fire, while another from 337 Squadron went down and its dead pilot was picked up by a Turkish frigate sailing in the area.

But why do fighters crash? There is a frightening statistic (which they call the “Swiss cheese” statistic) that not only our pilots, but pilots of all countries know well. What does this statistic say? That every five years, it will rarely happen that there is no accident. For aviators and experts who always look for the causes of accidents, aircraft, at least modern ones, such as the F-16, are built in such a way that they are unlikely to crash due to mechanical failure. But before every flight even in emergency missions (scrabble) the ground technicians examine the aircraft in detail to give it permission to fly. It does not mean, however, that an aircraft cannot subsequently suffer damage (engine pulling, for example). However, one of the common causes is human error or engine fire.