Paraglider flies over air force base, dangerously close to fighter jet

Glider pilot in Wednesday incident in central Israel violated air traffic rules and Flight Law, army says

By ToI Staff 12 October 2018, 3:20 pm Edit

Illustrative: A paraglider flies over northern Israel on February 18, 2017. (Nati Shohat/Flash90)

A parachutist flying a motorized glider penetrated an Israeli Air Force base’s airspace on Wednesday and flew dangerously close to a fighter jet, the IDF said Friday.

The glider entered the base’s airspace without coordinating its flight with either the army or civilian air traffic authorities.

The flight path also violated Israel’s Flight Law and air traffic regulations.

In a statement, the army urged Israeli pilots and flight enthusiasts to carefully follow relevant regulations and laws in order to avoid potentially deadly accidents and “to avoid endangering military and civilian aircraft.”

The army did not disclose which airbase was involved in the incident, but said it was in the “center of the country.”