Tornado hugs mountain...

[ATI_7500]

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/st ... 02,00.html

A GERMAN Tornado military jet on a training flight in the Swiss Alps crashed into a mountain today.

At least one of the two German pilots survived the crash and was retrieved by a mountain rescue team, police in the Swiss canton of Bern said.

The rescue helicopter located the other crew member on a glacier near the crash site near the village of Lauterbrunnen in central Switzerland, but there was no news on his condition.

Swiss Defence Ministry spokesman Martin Buehler said the fighter-bomber had refuelled shortly beforehand at a Swiss air force base after flying in from Corsica.

Eyewitnesses told the Swiss news agency ATS that the jet had flown low through a nearby valley before trying to climb.

Police said the jet reportedly exploded when it hit a mountain side.

At least one of the crew ejected before the crash, Mr Buehler said.

The German Defence Ministry confirmed the crash.

Foreign military aircraft frequently take part in navigation exercises in Swiss airspace.

From what I've heard, the pilot survived, his WSO died, but both ejected.

No news of the cause 'though.

[F3Hadlow]

Don't you think the title for this thread is somewhat inappropriate?

[ATI_7500]

Don't you think the title for this thread is somewhat inappropriate?

No.

[F3Hadlow]

Don't you think the title for this thread is somewhat inappropriate?

No.

Someone may well have been killed in this and you thought giving the thread a 'witty' title was the way to do it?

[flyboy 28]

Don't you think the title for this thread is somewhat inappropriate?

That's what Bjorn is here for.

[Anark]

You should know what Herectic is like by now...  ::)

[dcunning30]

1st thing that came to my mind was maybe a pilot spotted a tornado (weather) next to a mountain.  

[ozzy72]

I can think of far worse titles [smiley=evil.gif]

[expat]

Don't you think the title for this thread is somewhat inappropriate?

No.

Someone may well have been killed in this and you thought giving the thread a 'witty' title was the way to do it?

In a previous life a long time ago, my station commander was killed in a plane crash about a week before Christmas. We were sat about discussing the matter when someone remarked that if his wife had already bought his Christmas present, that he hoped she had kept the receipt as she could the get her money back, after all she was going to need it now. No one laughed, but it was one of those comments that worked at the time. It was and is the way that death and stress is dealt with in the services. If Heretic had titled it, "Tornado jockey goes home in jam jar" then I think we would have found our limit for example.

Matt

[ATI_7500]

It was and is the way that death and stress is dealt with in the services.

Whatever kind of humour is always great to help dealing with death.

[ozzy72]

Aye Matt I couldn't agree more. We had a guy from our climbing club who on a trip died. He hadn't tied himself into his portaledge (a kind of tent for climbers) or attached himself to the rock face. Then in the middle of the night he needed a pee and rolled out of the portaledge into freefall without a 'chute. When the guys came back and told us my tasteless comment (alas my mouth is often quicker than my brain) was "Dying for a piss huh?"

[Fozzer]

In my part of the world, Tornado, etc, Pilots are often trained to fly at low level through the Welsh hills and valleys in what is refered to as "Hugging the Terrain"....

Hugging the terrain can sometimes result in a disaster, so the title of the Thread made/makes sense to me.......!

Paul....Very near to Wales.... ...!