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A C101 plane of the Spanish 'Eagle Patrol' crashes into the sea. The pilot killed

(B2) A C101 aircraft from the Patrulla Aguila, the Spanish Air Force's aerobatic flight squadron, crashed into the sea on Thursday (February 27) afternoon off the town of La Manga , in the province of Murcia, killing its pilot.

A C101 aircraft of the 'eagle patrol' (credit: Spanish Air Force)

The accident happened " produced during a rehearsal “, says the Air Force. Vessels and a maritime patrol aircraft were dispatched to the scene to locate the aircraft wreckage and attempt to rescue the pilot. " There is no indication that the pilot was able to eject. We learned some time later that Captain Eduardo Garvalena had died in the crash.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez addressed the “ Sincere condolences from across government to Commander Garvalena's family and all of his Eagle Patrol comrades "indicating having felt" enormous sadness on receiving the news that reaches us after the accident of the C-101 plane of the General Air Academy in La Manga (Murcia) ».

Second accident in less than a year

This is the second similar accident in a few months. On August 26, another C101 plane crashed into the sea not far from there. Commander Francisco Marín had managed to eject but died before he could be rescued. Last September, another accident affecting a T35 Pillan training aircraft caused the death of the commander instructor Daniel Melero and his student Ensign Rosa Otero, 20 years old, off Santiago de la Ribera.

(NGV)

Nicolas Gros Verheyde

Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).

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