A US military F-16 fighter jet is believed to have crashed on Tuesday afternoon in the vicinity of Spangdahlem Air Base, located in Germany’s Eifel region.
The Trierischer Volksfreund reported the incident, citing information from several confidential sources. The crash is said to have occurred near the US Air Force base, where an F-16 squadron is stationed.
Local residents in Binsfeld told German broadcaster SWR that they saw a large cloud of smoke and witnessed a significant emergency response from both the fire brigade and police in the area.
According to initial reports, the pilot was attempting to land when the incident occurred. He managed to eject safely before the jet crashed onto a golf course near the B50 road between Binsfeld and Spangdahlem.
Authorities have confirmed that one person was injured in the incident. The cause of the crash has not yet been disclosed, and officials have yet to release further details. At the time of the accident, four F-16s were preparing to land as part of a training exercise. Following the crash, the remaining three aircraft were diverted to Ramstein Air Base.
A similar incident took place in October 2019, when another fighter jet crashed near Spangdahlem. The airbase itself covers approximately five square kilometres and is home to around 5,000 active soldiers, along with some 7,000 family members.
The United States Air Force has maintained a presence at Spangdahlem since the mid-1950s, with the base considered – along with Ramstein near Kaiserslautern – as one of the most important hubs for US military operations in Europe.
