US F-16 crashes over western Germany

BERLIN: An F-16 warplane belonging to the United States Air Force crashed over uninhabited territory in western Germany on Tuesday but the pilot escaped with minor injuries after ejecting, officials said.

Public broadcaster SWR reported earlier that the crash had happened near the city of Trier, not far from Rammstein, a major U.S. airbase in Germany.

A US air force spokeswoman said the jet had crashed at around 1500 local time (1300 GMT) during a routine training flight and that there had been no casualties.

Just last month, an F-16 jet of the Belgian air force crashed in western France, with both pilots successfully ejecting but one spending two hours hanging from a power line before being cut down, officials said.

Parts from the stricken plane, which was not carrying weapons and was flying from Belgium to a French base on a training mission, crashed into houses in the Morbihan region around the town of Pluvigner.

One pilot was rescued but the other had become tangled with a high-voltage power line and was left hanging from his parachute. The pilot was finally cut loose after a two-hour rescue effort.