IDF says helicopter experienced technical malfunction as chief of staff was onboard

A transport helicopter in which the IDF chief of staff was flying in experienced a technical malfunction in mid-air last week, forcing it to make an emergency landing, the military says.

The IDF says the glitch was not life-threatening, but Channel 12, which first reported on the matter, says the incident nearly led to a “disaster” due to incorrect handling of the situation by the flight crew.

According to the military, one of the Black Hawk helicopter’s motors experienced a “technical malfunction.”

“The immediate actions by the flight crew allowed them to handle the malfunction safely, and at no time was there a threat to the lives of the passengers,” the IDF says.

However, according to Channel 12, the flight crew behaved incorrectly during the incident, shutting down the aircraft’s working motor, causing the helicopter to quickly lose altitude — down to roughly 30 meters (100 feet) — before they realized their error and restarted it, allowing the aircraft to stabilize.

The helicopter, which was transporting IDF chief Aviv Kohavi from the Knesset to a military base, was then able to land at the Tel Nof Air Base in central Israel, where a second helicopter was able to ferry the army chief the rest of the way, the military says.

The IDF says the incident is being investigated.

— Judah Ari Gross