bobdina
08-16-2009, 04:30 PM
2 Russian Fighter Jets Collide Before Airshow
By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Published: 16 Aug 2009 09:06
MOSCOW - One pilot died and four people were seriously injured Aug. 16 after two fighter jets collided during aerobatics practice near Moscow ahead of the annual air show, Russian news agencies reported.
Two of the three crews members managed to eject from the two Sukhoi Su-27 fighters before they collided.
"In the catastrophe, one of the three pilots has died," Russian air force spokesman Vladimir Drik told Interfax.
One of the two who ejected had broken his back in the accident, Ria-Novosti said.
"He got caught hung up in the trees as a result of the fall, the pilot has been hospitalized," Ria-Novosti cited a police official as saying.
One of the two jets crashed on a residential building in the countryside near Moscow and in the ensuing fire three people on the ground suffered serious burns, Ria-Novosti, citing regional emergency officials, reported.
The pilots had been practicing aerobatics for a display at the Moscow air show, which opens Aug. 18.
The prestigious annual event, designed to showcase Russia's aerial military prowess, has in the past been attended by top military officers and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The show's organizers said the show would open as scheduled, news agencies reported.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4237550&c=EUR&s=AIR
By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Published: 16 Aug 2009 09:06
MOSCOW - One pilot died and four people were seriously injured Aug. 16 after two fighter jets collided during aerobatics practice near Moscow ahead of the annual air show, Russian news agencies reported.
Two of the three crews members managed to eject from the two Sukhoi Su-27 fighters before they collided.
"In the catastrophe, one of the three pilots has died," Russian air force spokesman Vladimir Drik told Interfax.
One of the two who ejected had broken his back in the accident, Ria-Novosti said.
"He got caught hung up in the trees as a result of the fall, the pilot has been hospitalized," Ria-Novosti cited a police official as saying.
One of the two jets crashed on a residential building in the countryside near Moscow and in the ensuing fire three people on the ground suffered serious burns, Ria-Novosti, citing regional emergency officials, reported.
The pilots had been practicing aerobatics for a display at the Moscow air show, which opens Aug. 18.
The prestigious annual event, designed to showcase Russia's aerial military prowess, has in the past been attended by top military officers and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The show's organizers said the show would open as scheduled, news agencies reported.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4237550&c=EUR&s=AIR