SONGKHLA — A Royal Thai Air Force pilot was killed when a jet went down during a Children’s Day air show at an airbase in the southern city of Hat Yai.
The JAS 39 Gripen was maneuvering over the airbase when it suddenly lost altitude, slammed into the ground and exploded. The pilot, 34-year-old Group Capt. Dilokrit Patawee, did not eject.
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A fire truck rushing to the scene of the crash overturned, but no one was seriously injured.
Children’s Day has proved perilous in the past as well.
Back in 2009, a 9-year-old girl was killed when a paratrooper jumped out of a plane and lander on her. Three years later, an army officer died after something went wrong while parachuting down in a Children’s Day demonstration in Chiang Mai province.
