What happened
On 23 June 2014, a mid-air collision took place during a scheduled aerial target demonstration involving military and civil aircraft. The incident involved a Learjet 35A operated by a civil company specializing in manned target services and a German Air Force Eurofighter.
The Learjet 35A had departed from Hohn Airport, initially following Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) on a southern heading. During the flight, the aircraft transitioned to Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and was traveling north within airspace E. Simultaneously, a pair of Eurofighters departed from Nörvenich Air Base to execute a Renegade mission. The objective of this mission was to intercept, identify, and escort the unidentified civil aircraft to a military airfield.
During the interception attempt, the Learjet 35A collided with one of the Eurofighters. Following the impact, the Learjet 35A crashed, resulting in two fatalities among the crew. The aircraft was completely destroyed in the crash. The pilot of the Eurofighter, despite sustaining significant damage to the jet, was able to successfully perform an emergency landing at Nörvenich Air Base.
Findings
The investigation was conducted by the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU) in coordination with the Directorate Aviation Safety of the German Armed Forces. The collision occurred while the military aircraft were attempting to intercept a civil aircraft acting as a target.