IDF blames loss of control for deadly crash of training flight

The Israel Defense Forces says the deadly crash of a training plane last month was due to a “lack of control,” as it unveils further details on the incident.

It also says Israeli Air Force chief Maj. Gen. Amikam Norkin approved returning the fleet of Grob G 120 “Snunit” trainer planes to service. Norkin ordered the fleet grounded after the November 24 crash, which killed Cpl. Lihu Ben-Bassa, 19, and his trainer, Maj. (res.) Itay Zayden, 42, when their plane crashed near Kibbutz Mishmar Hanegev in southern Israel.

In an interim report presented Thursday to Norkin and the families of the casualties, the investigative team determines that the plane crashed due to a “lack of control over the flight that developed during the drill,” but says it still couldn’t say “what caused the plane to enter into an uncontrolled maneuver.”

— Alex Fulbright

The victims of the IAF plane crash on November 24, 2020 — Maj. Itai Zayden (R) and Cpl. Lihu Ben-Bassa (L). (Facebook)