IDF chief’s helicopter makes emergency landing after motor malfunction

In second such incident this year, Kohavi’s chopper forced to land at army base in central Israel

Judah Ari Gross is The Times of Israel's religions and Diaspora affairs correspondent.

Israel's ambassador to the UN Danny Danon, left, with United Nation's Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, center, and IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi, in a helicopter as they review the security situation along Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, August 30, 2017. (Israel UN/Shlomi Amsalem)
Illustrative: Israel's ambassador to the UN Danny Danon, left, with United Nation's Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, center, and then-IDF deputy chief of staff Aviv Kohavi, in a helicopter as they review the security situation along Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, August 30, 2017. (Israel UN/Shlomi Amsalem)

A helicopter carrying IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi made an emergency landing at a base in central Israel on Sunday after it experienced a technical malfunction, the military said.

There were no injuries in the incident, according to the Israel Defense Forces.

It was the second time this year that a Black Hawk helicopter carrying Kohavi experienced a malfunction.

According to the military, while transporting the army chief, the helicopter pilots saw a warning of a motor malfunction, prompting them to quickly land the aircraft at an undisclosed base in central Israel.

Kohavi then continued on to his destination in a car, the IDF said.

“The matter will be investigated,” a military spokesperson said.

In July, a Black Hawk carrying Kohavi made an emergency landing after it experienced a motor issue and reportedly plummeted to some 30 meters (100 feet) from the ground. The army, which confirmed that the incident occurred, said the glitch was not life-threatening, but Channel 12, which first reported on the matter, said the incident nearly led to a “disaster” due to incorrect handling of the situation by the flight crew.

According to Channel 12, the flight crew in that case behaved incorrectly during the incident, shutting down the aircraft’s working motor instead of the failing one, causing the helicopter to quickly lose altitude before they realized their error and corrected it, enabling the aircraft to stabilize.

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