A terrifying accident occurred in the skies over Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, as two Air Force trainer aircraft collided during flight. Fortunately, no casualties were reported, but the Air Force concealed this fact for a whopping two months before belatedly admitting to it. With a recurrence of an accident identical to the disaster that claimed four lives four years ago, the military's lax safety net and closed administration have come under fire.
According to announcements by the Air Force and reports by SBS on the 1st, at around 9:17 AM on September 1, two KT-1 basic trainer aircraft belonging to the 3rd Training Wing collided near the Sacheon base. The aircraft became entangled while one was conducting training simulating an engine stoppage and the other was making a turning approach for landing. Although the wing of one trainer scratched and damaged the fuselage of the other, both succeeded in making emergency landings and the pilots were uninjured.
The military pointed to the pilots' failure to monitor the front as the cause of the accident. They reported the details to the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and referred those involved to a disciplinary committee. Instructions to prevent recurrence were issued to frontline units through inspection channels. However, they kept strictly silent toward the media and the public, offering the excuse that the trainer aircraft had landed safely and no casualties occurred.
This accident vividly recalls the tragedy of four years ago. On April 1, 2022, at 1:37 PM, two KT-1s from the same unit collided and crashed 6 km south of Sacheon Base, five minutes after takeoff. Despite attempting emergency escape, all four occupants—two student pilots (lieutenants) and two civilian flight instructors—were killed in the line of duty. Developed independently with domestic technology, the KT-1 is a core aircraft for training fighter pilots. Voices of criticism pointing out the repeated mid-air collisions and the military's "blind" response are growing louder.