Laurence Dollimore
A HIGHLY-experienced fighter pilot has died in Spain after crashing into a field.
Lieutenant Colonel Pablo Estrada Martin crashed his €60million F-18 jet in Peralejos, Teruel, at around 1pm on Friday.
The cause of the accident remains unknown, with Martin said to have had extensive flying experience.
Spain’s air force wrote on X: “We regret to inform you all that the death of our colleague, Lieutenant Colonel Pablo Estrada Martin, assigned to Fleet 12, has been confirmed…
“We share the grief of his family and friends. Rest in peace, comrade.”
Firefighters were called to the scene to ensure flames from the wreckage did not spark a forest fire.
The aircraft belonged to Fleet 12, based in Torrejon de Ardoz (Madrid).
The Ministry of Defence has ruled out the possibility that Martin was taking part in a test flight for an upcoming event on October 12.
There have now been at least six deaths recorded with this type of aircraft in Aragon alone.
The first was following a crash in 1988, two years after their debut, in Zaragoza. In 2000, two F-18s crashed in mid-flight in the same area.
In Peralejos, the municipality where Friday’s accident occurred, there is a monolith dedicated to the Air Force captains Jose Manuel Hernandez Ferri and Gonzalo Gracia Ramos, who died on May 4 1984, when their F-4 Phantom II plane crashed in the town.
