_
_
_
_
Military

Spanish Eurofighter jet crashes after taking part in National Day parade

The pilot was unable to eject from the aircraft in time and was killed, military sources said

Footage of the aftermath of the accident.Video: DAVID OLIVAS / EL PAÍS VÍDEO

The National Day parade held on Thursday morning in Madrid was marred by the death of a pilot whose Eurofighter combat jet crashed as it was returning back to base after the traditional flyby.

The parade began at 11am and lasted around 90 minutes. It later emerged that one of the four pilots who had participated in the flyby had crashed at around 12.09pm near the Los Llanos airbase in Albacete province. The pilot was unable to eject from the aircraft in time and died in the crash, military sources reported.

Captain Borja Aybar García, 34, died after something went wrong during the landing maneuver for reasons that remain unclear, said the Defense Ministry.

Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy and Defense Minister Maria Dolores de Cospedal left the reception at the Royal Palace after being informed about the crash and traveled to Los Llanos airbase.

Eyewitnesses said that the four planes arrived near the base in formation, at a low altitude, and were just fanning out when one of them suddenly crashed into the ground, triggering a large explosion and a dense plume of smoke.

English version by George Mills.

Tu suscripción se está usando en otro dispositivo

¿Quieres añadir otro usuario a tu suscripción?

Si continúas leyendo en este dispositivo, no se podrá leer en el otro.

¿Por qué estás viendo esto?

Flecha

Tu suscripción se está usando en otro dispositivo y solo puedes acceder a EL PAÍS desde un dispositivo a la vez.

Si quieres compartir tu cuenta, cambia tu suscripción a la modalidad Premium, así podrás añadir otro usuario. Cada uno accederá con su propia cuenta de email, lo que os permitirá personalizar vuestra experiencia en EL PAÍS.

En el caso de no saber quién está usando tu cuenta, te recomendamos cambiar tu contraseña aquí.

Si decides continuar compartiendo tu cuenta, este mensaje se mostrará en tu dispositivo y en el de la otra persona que está usando tu cuenta de forma indefinida, afectando a tu experiencia de lectura. Puedes consultar aquí los términos y condiciones de la suscripción digital.

More information

Archived In

Recomendaciones EL PAÍS
Recomendaciones EL PAÍS
_
_