Probe of fatal F-16 crash finds no pilot fault, but couldn’t control ‘asymmetric landing’

An investigation into an F-16 crash last year in which the pilot was killed revealed Thursday that the cause of the accident was, as suspected, an “asymmetric landing,” in which the plane’s weight was not evenly distributed, the army said.

According to the military, pilot Maj. Ohad Cohen Nov and his navigator followed the proper procedures during their attempted landing at the Ramon Air Force Base in southern Israel, but, regardless, “an inability to control the aircraft developed.”

This confirmed the finding of the army’s initial, more cursory investigation into the crash.

On October 5, Cohen Nov’s F-16I fighter jet crashed as he returned from a bombing run in the Gaza Strip following a rocket attack on the town of Sderot earlier that day.

The crew made several landing attempts, but at a certain point realized they would not be able to safely land the plane and decided to eject instead. The navigator, who sits behind the pilot, bailed out of the plane and sustained only light injuries. Cohen Nov also attempted to eject, but did not make it out in time and died.

The difference in time between the navigator’s ejection and Cohen Nov’s was 0.4 seconds, the Ynet news site reported.

The underlying cause of the crash was found to be an “asymmetric landing.”

Though not impossible or exceedingly rare, these types of landings — in this case where the plane had munitions on one wing, but not the other — are known to be more difficult than standard landings.

In some cases, pilots will drop their unused munitions into the sea in order to avoid such difficulties in landing, though this is not a required procedure, Eran Ramot, a former IAF pilot, told The Times of Israel soon after the incident.

The military found that “in retrospect, the [air] force’s existing orders did not sufficiently account for the potential risk.”

In light of the report, IAF chief Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel called for a review of asymmetric landing procedures, including test flights and retraining pilots and navigators, the army said.

Until the review is complete, the air force will restrict such risky landing attempts.

The details of the report will also be disseminated to “relevant bodies” throughout the air force so that every aspect of the incident can be reviewed, the army said.

Key aspects of the report were also shared with Cohen Nov’s family.

“The death of Maj. Ohad Cohen Nov is painful to his family and to the IDF,” the army added.

Cohen Nov, 34, was survived by a wife, two children, two sisters and his parents. A highly regarded pilot, he was promoted to deputy commander of the Atalef, or Bat, squadron of F-16s only a week before the incident.