Greek, Turkish war planes collide mid air
Dated 23/5/2006
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Athens: A pilot ejected in time and was rescued after Turkish and Greek warplanes collided over the eastern Aegean island of Karpathos, reports said Tuesday.
Reports said the pilot managed to use his ejector seat in time and was rescued by a Turkish vessel approximately 100 km off the Turkish coast.
A search and rescue operation was immediately undertaken with a number of Super Puma helicopters and navy frigate scanning the sea for signs of the pilots.
There was still no sign of the Greek pilot, Greek state television NET reported.
In Ankara, the Turkish General Staff confirmed in a written statement that the collision had taken place at 12:48 p.m. (0948 GMT) and that the Turkish plane involved was an F-16. The statement said the pilot Halil Ibrahim Ozdemir was rescued by a ship.
The plane was on a 'routine' flight after taking off from Dalaman airport on the Mediterranean coast, the statement said.
Reports said the Greek fighter plane was also an F-16.
NATO members Greece and Turkey regularly criticise each other for carrying out mock dogfights between air force fighter jets over the Aegean Sea.
Greece's defence ministry has said that military jets routinely intercept a number of Turkish jets that invade the country's airspace on a daily routine. Turkey regularly denies the claims.
The two countries have come close to war three times in the past 30 years, most recently in 1996 over a rocky island in the Aegean.
Despite improved relations in recent years, Ankara and Athens have still not resolved territorial disputes involving the Greek islands located off the Turkish western coast and the issue of the division of Cyprus.
