
A Hungarian Air Force JAS 39C Gripen fighter jet crashed on Monday near Szolnok in central Hungary, Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced on social media. The pilot ejected safely and was transported to a military hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, including a spinal injury requiring surgery, according to state secretary László Kürtös and the Honvéd Hospital in Budapest.
The crash occurred during a routine training exercise involving air combat maneuvers with another aircraft, Defense Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi said. The pilot attempted to land at Szolnok’s MH Kiss József Air Base after the aircraft’s instruments failed mid-flight, but the jet veered off and caught fire upon touchdown. The aircraft was armed with air-to-air missiles and cannon ammunition, prompting the pilot to steer it toward a military zone to avoid civilian areas, Ruszin-Szendi added.
Hungary’s fleet includes 18 Gripen C/D jets, with 14 stationed at Kecskemét Air Base. The first Gripens entered service in 2006, and the latest two were delivered by Swedish manufacturer Saab earlier this year. Saab’s communications chief, Mattias Rådström, confirmed the company was aware of the incident but had no additional details, deferring to Hungarian authorities for further information .
The defense minister and the chief of the Hungarian Armed Forces traveled to the crash site, where the wreckage was contained within the military helicopter base’s perimeter. No civilian injuries or infrastructure damage were reported. An investigation into the cause is underway, with initial findings suggesting a technical malfunction triggered the emergency.
In 2015, Hungary grounded its Gripen fleet for inspections after two separate crashes, one in the Czech Republic and another in eastern Hungary, both linked to technical issues. The current incident marks the first Gripen crash in Hungary since those events.
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