Breaking: Fighter Jet Crashes During Training, Pilot Killed and Navigator Missing

A French Air Force Mirage 2000D fighter jet crashed during a training flight in the north-eastern part of the country. At least one crew member was killed, while another remains missing, the French Air Force said on Wednesday (21 October 2026).

The aircraft crashed at around 21:00 GMT on Tuesday (20 October 2026), near its air base on the outskirts of Nancy. Rescue teams were deployed to search for the missing crew member.

French Air Force spokesman Colonel David Papalardo said there were indications that one of the crew had failed to eject before the aircraft hit the ground.

“It appears that at least one crew member did not manage to eject,” Papalardo told radio station franceinfo, as quoted by AFP.

He said the aircraft had two crew members: a young pilot still undergoing training and a highly experienced weapons systems officer.

Henry Lemoine, an official representing several villages near the crash site, said on Facebook that drone footage had been used to locate the wreckage. Emergency responders had also arrived at the site.

The Mirage 2000D is a two-seat fighter jet that entered service with the French Air Force in 1993. It has been deployed in several conflicts, including Kosovo in 1999, Libya in 2011, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and the Sahel region of Africa.

Several Mirage 2000D aircraft have previously been involved in accidents. In January 2019, two crew members were killed when their jet crashed during a low-altitude night flight in eastern France.

In another accident near Nancy in July 2021, the crew managed to eject before their fighter jet crashed.

France has recently completed a modernisation programme for its Mirage 2000D fleet. The government plans to keep the aircraft in service into the 2030s.