A recent mid-air collision between two French Rafale fighter jets has left two pilots dead, according to the French defense ministry.
Reports are unclear about exactly how many personnel were aboard the two planes. What is known is that two pilots, Sebastien Mabire and Matthis Laurens, died. Another person also described as a pilot was apparently found safe after ejecting from his aircraft, but he has not been identified. Conflicting reports seem to indicate that a fourth student pilot has not been found, but it is impossible to verify this.
French President Emmaneul Macron said the nation was in grief and extended its condolences to the families of the pilots, and to their “brothers in arms at Air Base 113 in Saint-Dizier.”
There is no word yet on what may have caused the collision, which took place in the skies above Colombey-les-Belles, a town located in the northeast of France. Local officials told media that “military authorities” will eventually release the results of the crash investigation.
The Rafale is a fighter jet made by Dassault Aviation. The jet is supersonic, meaning that it travels faster than the speed of sound, which produces incredibly loud sonic booms that sound like a cross between a major thunderclap and a cracking whip. The plane is considered “multi-role,” meaning that it’s used to pursue enemy fighters, to fire on targets at sea and on the ground, and it’s also suited for reconnaissance missions. Some are even equipped to carry nuclear warheads.
The Rafale is one of the best-selling fighters in France, and accidents involving the plane are rare.
One witness on the ground said the collision happened at 12: 30 p.m. local time. Deputy Colombey-les-Belles mayor Patrice Bonneaux said people “heard a loud noise.” But it wasn’t the expected sonic boom he said, but rather a strange “percussive” sound. Bonneaux said people on the ground assumed the planes had crashed into each other but did not want to believe it.
The last known crash of a Rafale in 2007 happened near Neuvic in the southwest of the country, and that was also the first crash of this particular aircraft.
Two years later a pair of Rafale fighters crashed on their way back to the Charles de Gaulle, an aircraft carrier that was sitting off the coast of Perpignan. The jets had been on a test flight, and the crash took one pilots’ life.
