Finnish fighter jet crashes in Lapland
The accident occurred near Rovaniemi Airport on Wednesday morning.
An F/A-18 Hornet crashed near Rovaniemi Airport in Finnish Lapland on Wednesday morning, according to a post by the Finnish Defence Forces (FDF) on social media platform X.
The FDF said the pilot ejected from the plane before the crash and had been located by rescue services.
The accident occurred at about 10:50am, with emergency services in the region receiving an alert about a “major air traffic accident” shortly afterwards.
An eyewitness interviewed by Yle, Mika Lehtiniemi, said he noticed the jet was flying particularly low over the Syväsenvaara residential area in the moments before the crash.
“The plane rose up very suddenly and then turned over as if on its back. Then a few seconds passed and I saw a cloud of black smoke. I didn’t see fire, but I saw black, terrible smoke,” Lehtiniemi said.
A team of Yle journalists were working in the area at the time, and reported seeing plumes of smoke coming from near the city’s airport.
There are no reports of any injuries on the ground as a result of the crash.
Finavia: No impact on civilian flights
According to an Yle reporter at the scene, the road leading to Rovaniemi Airport has been closed, with police officers stopping traffic.
However, Yle understands that the accident will have no impact on civilian flights in and out of Rovaniemi airport. The next flight scheduled to land at the airport will arrive at 1:35pm from Helsinki, while the next departing flight is at 2:15pm.
National airport management firm Finavia said at midday that no changes have been made to either of these flights, but that situation may change. Passengers will be informed of any possible changes by the airline, Finavia added.
Police spokesperson Jouni Koivunen told Yle that the crash scene is being cordoned off while the investigation into the cause is ongoing.
Koivunen added that the Finnish Air Force is responsible for investigating the accident, as it involves a military aircraft, but the investigation will be undertaken in cooperation with local police.
However, the police will only launch their own investigation if a crime is suspected to have occurred in relation to the crash.
Nordic defence ministers in Rovaniemi
A two-day meeting of Nordic defence ministers, hosted by Finland’s Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen (NCP), is currently underway in Rovaniemi.
The ministers had been due to observe training drills by Finnish conscripts on Wednesday, but this event has been cancelled due to the crash.
Finland is chairing the Nordic Defence Cooperation (Nordefco) this year.
This article may be further updated.
Related stories from around the North:
United States: Villagers support critical lifeline in rural Alaska after plane crash kills 10, The Canadian Press
