Hungarian Air Force Gripen fighter jet crashes near Szolnok base

A Gripen fighter jet belonging to the Hungarian Defence Force crashed near the Szolnok military base on the morning of August 24, 2026, Hungarian officials said.

Accounts of the timing differed slightly. Prime Minister Péter Magyar said the aircraft went down at around 11:00 local time, while Defence Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi placed the incident a few minutes after 10:00. The pilot ejected before impact and was taken to hospital by ambulance, the minister said in a video statement.

Magyar said preliminary information pointed to no injuries to others and no damage to civilian infrastructure. Ruszin-Szendi said the cause of the crash was not yet known and that he was heading to the site. An investigation into the incident has been opened.

Unverified footage circulating on social media appeared to show smoke rising from the crash site, with the sound of emergency vehicles responding in the background.

No further details have been released on the aircraft's mission at the time of the crash or on the pilot's condition.