Israeli F-16I Sufa Loses Braking Action During Taxi. Pilot Forced To Veer Into A Ditch.

An unusual incident occurred to an F-16I Sufa at Ramon air base.

An Israeli Air Force F-16I Sufa belonging to the 119 Squadron, also known as “The Bat” Squadron, was damaged at Ramon air base, Israel, on Oct. 31.

According to the reports, the aircraft was taxiing after landing when the pilot lost braking action: the pilot deliberately forced the Sufa into a ditch in order to stop it. The emergency maneuver prevented the aircraft from harming ground crews. The aircrew managed to escape the aircraft safely.

The incident is being investigated; the extent of the damage suffered by the aircraft is unknown.

תקרית בטיחות אמש בבסיס חיל האוויר בדרום: מטוס קרב סופה f16 חזר מגיחת אימון, ולאחר הנחיתה איבד את בלמיו בשל תקלה טכנית חמורה. הצוות הצליח להסיטו לשול, לתוך תעלה, ולמנוע בכך פגיעה בצוות הקרקע ובמטוס שהיה לפניו. נזק קל נגרם לחלקו הקדמי של המטוס. התקלה מטופלת והתחקור נמשך pic.twitter.com/i2xHAQHj4V

— יואב זיתון (@yoavzitun) November 1, 2018

As a side note, the F-16I Sufa was reportedly returning from a training mission. However, based on the only available image, the aircraft seem to carry at least a live GBU-38 JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition).

Image credit: Israeli Defense Force via @yoavzitun

About David Cenciotti

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David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.