2010 Israeli Air Force CH-53 crash

On 26 July 2010, an Israeli Air Force Sikorsky CH-53 Yas'ur helicopter crashed during a training flight in the Carpathian Mountains, near the city of Brașov in Romania. The accident took place during a joint Romanian-Israeli aviation military exercise code-named "Blue Sky 2010".

All on board the aircraft died: four Israeli pilots, two Israeli mechanics, and one Romanian liaison officer. An investigation into the incident concluded that the crash was most likely due to human error.

Background

In September 2003, an agreement was signed between the Romanian and Israeli Air Forces on cooperation and training, with the first training session being held in August 2004. This cooperation was important to the IAF, as Romania's geography includes high-altitude terrain and climate conditions that are different than those in Israel, and allows the IAF to practice special techniques and train in a different terrain. Another military exercise and cooperation agreement between Israel and Romania was signed in 2006, and was extended in 2009.

On 18 July 2010, a joint exercise of the Israeli Air Force and Romanian Air Force began, in which Yasur helicopters from the 118 Squadron took part. This squadron, based at the Tel Nof air base, has participated in all of Israel's recent major operations and wars, mainly for transporting special forces into enemy territory. The exercise was known as Blue Sky 2010, which was supposed to last for 11 days, and in which the Romanian and Israeli troops practiced flying at low altitudes in difficult terrain for search-and-rescue missions and medical evacuations.

The Yasour transport helicopter, (Sikorsky CH-53), is considered by Israel to be the most reliable aircraft of its kind in the IDF, and has been used for over 40 years. The aircraft was bought from the United States and integrated into the Israeli Air Force service in 1969. The aircraft is used by the IAF's 669 Search and Rescue team, and is also the IAF's main aircraft for transporting soldiers, as it can carry 35 soldiers with all of their equipment. In 2007, under a program called "Yasour 2025," intended to extend the Yasour's life until 2025, the IAF installed over 20 new electronic systems, including, for the first time on helicopters, one for missile defense,

Accident

On 26 July 2010 at 1:15 p.m., two Yasur helicopters took off from the Romanian Air Force Base in Boboc and headed north toward the Carpathian Mountains. The fog which prevailed at the flight altitude made it difficult to navigate.

The two helicopters were flying in formation at a low altitude as part of the exercise. While over the Carpathian Mountains in Romania, one of the helicopters radioed that it had lost visual and radio contact with its counterpart. The Israeli Air Force confirmed that it lost contact with one of the helicopters. The helicopter had crashed at approximately 4:00 p.m. at an altitude of 2,246 m (7,369 ft).