2 pilots die in Rafale fighters collision in France

Paris, Aug 15 (IANS) French President Emmanuel Macron said that two pilots had died in an accident during a Rafale fighters' training mission on Wednesday. 

"It is with great sadness that we learn of the deaths ... in an air accident during a Rafale training mission," said Macron on X as reported by Xinhua news agency.

Two Rafale fighter jets collided in midair before crashing to the ground in northeastern France on Wednesday at around 12:30 local time on return from a refuelling mission in Germany, said the French Air Force on X.

Two pilots were in one plane and one in the other.

Earlier on Wednesday noon, the French authorities announced that the pilot who was alone in one plane was found safe and sound.

Two Rafale fighter jets of the French army collided mid-air on Wednesday noon in France's northeastern department of Meurthe et Moselle, French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu confirmed on his X account.

It was not immediately clear what caused the collision that authorities said occurred over Colombey-les-Belles, a town in northeastern France.

"The military authorities will report on the causes of the accident", said the local prefecture.

The Rafale "multi-role" fighter -- used to hunt enemy planes, strike ground and sea targets, carry out reconnaissance and even carry France's nuclear warheads -- has become a bestseller for the French arms industry.

Accidents involving Rafale jets are rare.

"We heard a loud noise, around 12:30 p.m.," Patrice Bonneaux, deputy mayor of Colombey-les-Belles, told the media.

It was not the usual sonic boom of a fighter jet breaking the sound barrier, he said.

"It was a strange noise, a percussive sound."

"I assumed that two planes had collided, but we didn't believe it," he said, adding that a road bordering a nearby forest had been cordoned off.

In December 2007, a Rafale jet crashed near Neuvic in southwestern France. Investigators concluded that the pilot had become disorientated.

That was believed to be the first crash of a Rafale.

In September 2009, two Rafale aircraft went down as they flew back to the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle off the coast of Perpignan after completing a test flight. One pilot died.

France has sold the Rafale to Egypt, India, Greece, Indonesia, Croatia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Lecornu said in January that France had ordered 42 new Rafale fighter jets, with the first to be delivered in 2027. The French military has now ordered more than 230 Rafales since the jet went into service.

French President Emmanuel Macron has urged defence manufacturers to boost production and innovation as Europe seeks to increase arms supplies to buttress Ukraine, which has been struggling to fight off Russia's invasion, now in its third year.

--IANS

int/khz