Mid-air collision of fighter jets: Accident occurred while taking pictures on a phone

Investigators have finally found the sensational reason behind the mid-air collision of two fighter jets in South Korea in 2021. They said that the accident occurred because the pilots were busy taking pictures and videos on their mobile phones during the flight.

According to the Al Jazeera report, the incident occurred during a flight mission in the central city of Daegu. Although there were no casualties, the two F-15K fighter jets were damaged. They later cost about 880 million won (about 596 thousand dollars) to repair them.

The investigation revealed that one of the pilots wanted to take pictures to commemorate the last flight with his unit. During the flight, he started taking pictures using his personal mobile phone. Seeing this, the pilot of the lead plane also asked the other pilot to take a video of the wingman plane.

At that time, when the wingman pilot tried to raise the plane up and rotate it, the two planes came very close. The lead plane tried to descend to avoid a collision, but the two fighter jets eventually collided, damaging the left wing of one plane and the tail stabilizer of the other.

The pilot involved was suspended and later discharged from the military. He was fined 88 million won. However, after an appeal, the investigation board ruled that he would only have to pay one-tenth of the amount, not the full amount.

The investigators also said that taking pictures on important flights was a “common practice” among pilots at the time. However, the air force also had to take partial responsibility due to the lack of strict controls on the matter.