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The OV-10 Bronco F-AZKM in September 2022. (Photo © Gee Bee for WWN)north

The French-based OV‑10 Bronco, registered F‑AZKM and flown by Chuck Berry, was involved in a crash-landing yesterday morning in Lezno, Poland. Fortunately, available sources indicate that the pilot is quite shaken by the accident but otherwise unhurt.

The accident’s cause is unknown at this time. Videos are circulating online, showing the Bronco crash-landing with its gear retracted. The footage shows the aircraft suffered a substantial impact with heavy damage to the airframe.

Built in 1971, OV‑10 Bronco F‑AZKM is a former German air force aircraft that was used as a target tow. After being retired from military service, it was exported to France in 1991 and was not operational for several years before being restored to full airworthiness by the Musée Européen de l’Aviation de Chasse in Montélimar.

Returning to the skies in 1997, it was one of the very few airworthy Broncos still flying in Europe, and a regular participant in French and European airshows.

Sources :

• Footage on the crash-landing from Air Plus News on Facebook

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The accident aircraft : Fouga Magister No. 480, registered F-AZQC (Photo Laurent Salard / Air Spot Photos (CC BY-SA 4.0))

Disaster struck on Monday, May 11, 2026, in the Seine-et-Marne region of France when a vintage Fouga CM.170 Magister crashed shortly after takeoff from Melun-Villaroche Airport. Both occupants of the aircraft lost their lives.

The accident occurred at approximately 4:15 p.m. in a wooded area located between Fontainebleau and Chailly-en-Bière. According to several witnesses at the scene, a loud explosion was heard before a fireball appeared in the sky, followed by the aircraft crashing into the forest.

The aircraft involved was Fouga CM.170 Magister F-AZQC, serial number 480, operated by the Fouga 480 association based at Melun-Villaroche.

Emergency services quickly converged on the crash site, which was difficult to access due to the dense vegetation. Upon arrival, rescue personnal were only able to confirm the deaths of both occupants, while a small vegetation fire caused by the impact was quickly brought under control on the edge of the Fontainebleau forest.

The 53-year-old pilot held a professional CPL license and reportedly had approximately 15,000 flying hours according to the first information released by the Melun public prosecutor’s office. The passenger, who came from northern France, was taking part in an experience flight aboard the aircraft.

The investigation has been entrusted to the Bureau d’Enquêtes et d’Analyses pour la sécurité de l’aviation civile (BEA), assisted by the Air Transport Gendarmerie. Investigators will now work to determine the exact circumstances of the accident. Possible causes under consideration include mechanical failure, pilot error, or a bird strike.

We extend our deepest condolences, prayers, and thoughts to the families and loved ones of the victims of this tragic accident.

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The accident aircraft photographed in 2010 (Photo Jeff (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0))

A dramatic accident occurred on Friday, June 6 around 2:30 p.m. at Air Base 721 in Rochefort-Saint-Agnant, France. The Morane-Saulnier MS.733 F-AZXU crashed, resulting in the death of Alexandre Fritz, a former military pilot with 30 years of service.

He was performing a flight demonstration on the occasion of the graduation ceremony of the promotion class at the Non-Commissioned Officer Training School of the French Air and Space Force (EFSOAAE) in Rochefort.

A witness told Sud-Ouest that “the plane tried to turn around and suddenly stalled, from a height of 300 meters. Then there was a loud boom.” The exact causes of the accident are not yet known, and an investigation is underway.

We extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of Alexandre Fritz.

Sources:

• Rochefort: A pilot dies in a plane crash | Sud-Ouest (in French)
• A former MS.733 “Alcyon” training aircraft crashed near Rochefort air base | Opex360 (in French)

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Beech D.18S Expeditor ‘1164 64’ G-BKGL seen at Old Warden in 2019 ( Photo © Alan Wilson (CC BY-SA 2.0))

Only a few days after the Beech 18 runway excursion at the Paris Air Legend airshow, we have learned that the Beech 18 registered G-BKGL crashed yesterday near Vescovato in Corsica.

According to local authorities, the three people on board were wounded.  One has reportedly suffered severe burns, and is in a life-threatening condition.  A second occupant was severely wounded. The aircraft had been destroyed.

This aircraft was well known by aviation enthusiasts as it was based at Duxford in the United-Kingdom for several years.

Our thoughts and prayers go to the victims of this accident, and their families.

Sources (in French) :

• Préfecture de la Haute-Corse | Crash d’un avion de tourisme sur la commune de Vescovato
• Le Parisien | Crash d’un avion de tourisme en Corse : deux Britanniques gravement blessés

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Beech E.18S F-AZEJ (Photo Alan Wilson (CC BY-SA 2.0))

The Beechcraft Model 18 (E18S) F-AZEJ belonging to  the Amicale Jean-Baptiste Salis was damaged today in a take-off accident on the first day of the Paris Air Legend 2021 airshow. Fortunately, nobody was hurt in the accident. The aircraft reportedly struggled to get airborne, veering off the runway and coming to a stop in an adjacent field. Photos of the accident appear to indicate moderate damage.

Correction (12 September 2021) : according to Le Parisien, the pilot appears to have suffered minor wounds.

Sources :

• With photos :  AeroWeb | Air Legend 2021 : accident d’un Beech 18 lors de son décollage
• Le Parisien | Montereau-sur-le-Jard: un pilote légèrement blessé après un crash au décollage

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The Jaguar A91 at the Paris Air & Space Museum on 17 January 2021 (Photo courtesy Xavier Méal)

January 17, 2021 is the 30th anniversary of the initial strikes of Operation Desert Storm led by the US-led coalition  against Iraq. It was also the day on which the SEPECAT Jaguar A91 of the French Air Force made its last flight after suffering extensive battle damage.  On this day, the aircraft officially joined the collection of the Paris Air & Space Museum (Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace) after many years of illustrious service.  The airframe has largely remained untouched since 1991 and shows its battle scars.

Read the full announcement on the French Air Force’s website (in French)

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The Aquilon n° 83 (Photo credit : IFREMER)

On November 20, 2020, the Pourquoi Pas ? , a ship of the French oceanographic fleetoperated by the Ifremerand the French navy was conducting scientific work south of Porquerolles in southern France, when its remotely-controlled Victor6000 robot discovered the wreck of an Aquilon fighter, a French-built de Havilland Sea Venom, nearly 8,000 ft beneath the surface.

The markings on the tail revealed the history of the aircraft and its pilot. The accident happened on 13 June 1960 as Aquilon 203 n°83 of Flottille 11F was in the last stages of its carrier qualifications on the British carrier HMS Ark Royal sailing off Hyères. During the final launch before returning to its base in Hyères, Aquilon n°83 hit the water and sank immediately. Its pilot, 27-year-old Maître Jean LEGOUHY, disappeared with his aircraft.

The Aquilon was the French navy’s first operational jet fighter. Built starting in 1952 by the Société Nationale de Construction Aéronautiques du Sud-Est (SNCASE) in Marignane, it was built in several versions and served from 1955 to 1966. The type served as a transition and an initiation to jet-powered aircraft, replacing the Hellcat and serving alongside the Corsair, which was used for ground attack until 1964. The final flight ig the Aquilon in the French naval air arm took place on 30 June 1966.

Sources : Marine nationale

Continue reading]]> Sergent-chef René Billotet, born on 18 April 1925 in Dôle (France) and last survivor of the Royal Air Force’s No 342 (Free French) Squadron passed away at his home aged 95.

Better known in France as the Groupe de Bombardement Lorraine, the squadron played an essential and unusual role during the D-Day landings. On the morning of 6 June 1944, six of the squadron’s aircraft were deployed to lay smoke screens between German coastal defences and the advancing Allied ships.

It was a particularly dangerous mission, as the aircraft had to fly a low, fast and predictable course very close to enemy defenses, making new passes regularly to maintain the smoke screens. One of the aircraft didn’t return to base : Boston BZ213 crashed into the sea during the mission, killing its crew of three.

The Boston IIIA BZ213 flown by Sgt Boissieux, SLt Canut & Sgt Henson, No 342 (Free French) Squadron, lost on 6 June 1944. © Gaëtan Marie

René Billotet was not selected to fly this mission but contributed to it by installing the smoke generators on the squadron’s Boston bombers during the previous night.

At the young age of 17, he had joined the French Resistance after Germany invaded the southern part of France on 11 November 1942. In June 1943 he managed to cross the Channel and joined the Free French Air Force where he was assigned to No 342 Squadron. He flew about ten wartime missions as an engineer.

After the war’s end, he continued serving in the French air force until 1963 and was always very active, visiting the Lyon-Mont Verdun airbase on a regular basis.

Our thoughts and prayers go to the family and friends of sergent-chef René Billotet.

Sources

• Opex 360 | Dernier survivant du Groupe de bombardement Lorraine, le sergent-chef René Billottet nous a quittés
• Site de l’Armée de l’Air | Sergent-chef René Billottet : une vie au service de l’armée de l’air
• La Croix | René Billottet, un vétéran français du « D-Day » à l’heure anglaise

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Spitfire PR.XIX PS890/F-AZJS at Duxford in 2015 (Photo Alan Wilson (CC BY-SA 2.0))j

The Spitfire PR.XIX PS890/F-AZJS flew again on 6 August 2020 at Duxford with John Romain at the controls.

The aircraft was heavily damaged in a take-off accident in June 2017 and was sent to Duxford for complete repairs. It still carries its former markings of No 152 Squadron RAF in south-east Asia.

The aircraft is expected to participate in the Paris Air Legend 2020 airshow on 12/13 September.

https://www.facebook.com/Warbirdapps/posts/3453410748002974

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A Stampe & Vertongen SV-4. (For illustration purpose. This is not the crashed aircraft). (Photo Pete Webber (CC BY-SA 2.0))

A Stampe & Vertongen  Stampe SV-4 crashed near the Angers-Marcé airport on Saturday the 4th of July, killing its pilot. The second crew member was hospitalized and is in critical condition. Both crew members and the aircraft were part of Stampe Aéro Passion, an association based at the Angers-Marcé airport.

The causes of the accident are not yet known. The aircraft involved appears to be F-PTTL, an SV-4 with a Lycoming O-320 engine.

Our thoughts and prayers go to the victims of this tragic accident and their relatives and friends.

Sources:

• Ouest France | Un crash d’avion fait un mort et un blessé grave près de l’aéroport d’Angers-Marcé