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Air Baltic Flight Makes Emergency Landing in Copenhagen

Air Baltic flight BT-619 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Copenhagen, Denmark, on June 13th.

The Boeing 737-300 plane heading from Riga, Latvia, to Amsterdam, Netherlands, was diverted after the crew discovered fire on board.

Swedish armed forces dispatched a fighter jet to inspect the plane from the outside. It did not find any traces of fire or smoke.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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Italian Fighter Jets Intercept Air France Flight After Loss of Communication

Air France flight AF-671 was intercepted by two Italian fighter jets over Italy, on March 22nd.

The incident happened after the Boeing 777-300 plane flying from Roland Garros Airport, Reunion, to Paris Orly Airport, France, lost communication with the Italian ATC.

The plane subsequently landed safely at Paris Orly Airport.

Everyone aboard remained unharmed.

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U.S. Navy Fighter Jet Crashes Off Key West; 2 Killed

A U.S. Navy fighter jet crashed near the Naval Air Station Key West, Florida, on March 14th.

The F/A-18F Super Hornet plane was performing a training flight when it went down.

There were two aviators aboard, including the pilot Lt. Cmdr. James Brice Johnson and the weapons systems operator Lt. Caleb Nathaniel King; both were killed in the crash.

The incident is being investigated.

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F-16 Jet Makes Emergency Landing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base

An F-16C fighter jet made an emergency landing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Greene County, Ohio, on April 4th.

According to the base spokesperson Bryan Ripple, the jet belonging to the Toledo-based 180th Fighter Wing declared an emergency due to a hydraulic leak.

The plane landed safely. No injuries were reported.

It is believed that the jet was involved in an aerial training exercise in the Buckeye Military Operating Area before the incident.

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Thai Air Force Fighter Jet Crashes in Lopburi Province; Pilot Killed

Royal Thai Air ForceA Royal Thai Air Force F-16 fighter jet crashed in Khok Samrong district of Thailand’s central Lopburi province, at around 3 p.m. on February 20.

The accident happened when the plane was participating in missile-launch training drill.

According to Lopburi governor Thanakom Chongchira, “The pilot could not eject himself out of the plane in time.” Rescue teams found his body in the wreckage.

The cause of crash is under investigation.

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Lockheed, Pentagon Agree on $4B F-35 Fighter Jet Contract

U.S. Defence authorities and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) have agreed upon the terms of a $4 billion contract for purchase of an 8th batch of 43 F-35 fighter planes.

The deal was first expected in May/June however, the talks slowed after engine failure on an Air force plane on June 23 grounded the whole fleet of F-35 jets for weeks.

The deal includes aircrafts to be manufactured for the U.S military, Britain and other allies and will reduce the cost of the radar-evading warplane by around 3 percent. Sources said that the cost of U.S Air Force model of the jet will lower by around 4 percent.

Lockheed has delivered 23 jets out of 36 which were due this year and the company said they plan to deliver the remaining ones within due time.

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82 U.S. Air Force F-16Ds Grounded due to Cracks

On August 19, the U.S. Air Force said that they grounded 82 two-seater F-16D fighter jets because of canopy sill longeron cracks discovered between the front and rear pilots seats.

One hundred and fifty-seven F-16Ds were inspected by individual F-16 units and the cracks were discovered in 82. According to the Air Force sources, the 24 years old F-16D fleet is primarily used for training.

Lt. Col. Steve Grotjohn, Weapons System Division deputy chief said, “As aircraft accumulate flight hours, cracks develop due to fatigue from sustained operations… Fortunately, we have a robust maintenance, inspection and structural integrity program to discover and repair deficiencies as they occur.”

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Ukrainian Warplane Shot Down Near the MH17 Crash Site

Ukraine FlagA Ukrainian fighter jet crashed after it was shot down near the crash site of MH17, in Eastern Ukraine, on August 7.

The incident happened when the Sukhoi warplane was flying low over the rebel-held area, near Donetsk, some 40 km west of the site where the Malaysian Airline flight MH17 crashed on July 17.

The aircraft exploded midair before it crashed into the ground; however, the witnesses reported that the pilot managed to parachute out.

Spokesperson of Ukrainian military Vladislav Seleznyov, confirmed that rebels had shot down a fighter jet and said that “the pilot managed to steer the craft away from a residential area.” He also said that a search and rescue operation is being carried out for the pilot.