Greek Air Force F-16 Catches Fire After Emergency Landing on Zakynthos Island

Greece: A Hellenic Air Force F-16 fighter jet caught fire after carrying out an emergency landing at Zakynthos Airport in western Greece on Thursday. The pilot escaped unharmed, according to initial reports. Authorities are inspecting the aircraft to determine the extent of the damage, with early indications suggesting a possible landing gear malfunction. 

The jet had departed from Araxos Air Base and is assigned to the 116th Combat Wing.

The aircraft landed at around 1:45 pm local time (10:45 GMT), and the pilot escaped unharmed, according to the Hellenic Air Force. The air force confirmed that the pilot was in good health and said an investigation has been launched to determine the cause of the incident.

Local media reported that the fighter jet received a warning of a possible onboard fire before landing. According to reports, the aircraft touched down without deploying its landing gear, sliding several dozen metres along the runway before catching fire.

Videos shared on social media showed the jet engulfed in flames as firefighters and airport emergency teams rushed to extinguish the blaze. However, the Hellenic Air Force has not officially confirmed reports about the fire warning or the landing gear malfunction.

The aircraft belonged to the 335 Squadron of the 116th Combat Wing, based at Araxos Air Base in western Greece.

The emergency forced authorities to temporarily shut the airport runway, leading to widespread flight delays. Airport schedules showed departures and arrivals pushed back until at least 9 pm local time, affecting several flights during the peak summer travel season when thousands of tourists visit the Ionian island.

A specialist Air Force recovery team was expected to remove the damaged aircraft from the runway so normal airport operations could resume.