F-16 crashes in Poland during preparation for air show: what is known
28 August 23:21
On the evening of Thursday, August 28, an F-16 fighter jet crashed in the Polish city of Radom, which was preparing for an air show scheduled for the weekend. The pilot of the plane was killed. This was reported by a representative of the Polish government, Adam Szlapka, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
“A tragedy in Radom (Polish city – ed.): an F-16 plane crashed during preparations for the AirShow. Unfortunately, the pilot was killed. Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense Vladyslav Kosyniak-Kamysh spoke with the Prime Minister, he is on his way to the scene,” he wrote on social media.
Tragedy in Radomu, in the trakcie przygotowań do AirShow rozbił się samolot F-16. Niestety pilot zginął. Premier @KosiniakKamysz is in the air on the screen. Są in stałym kontakcie z Premierem.
– Adam Szłapka (@adamSzlapka) August 28, 2025
According to Wiadomosci, the F-16 plane crashed while preparing for the AirShow in Radom. The fire service received a report of the crash at 19:27. Rescue services are now at the scene.
The runway into which the plane crashed was destroyed.
A video posted on social media shows the fighter jet abruptly losing altitude and crashing to the ground. A huge fire erupts, and the pilot obviously could not have survived the crash.
🇵🇱💥 DRAMAT w Radomiu!
– Raport Światowy (@RaportSwiatowy) August 28, 2025
Podczas treningów do Radom Air Show doszło do katastrofy – polski myśliwiec F-16 spadł na ziemię.✈️ pic.twitter.com/ZCLTc0cWiY
Podczas ćwiczeń przed Air Show w Radomiu różnił się F-16. pic.twitter.com/GhusSRlX5T
– Remiza.pl (@remizacompl) August 28, 2025
According to Polish media, the crash occurred during a barrel roll maneuver. The likely cause was a stall at low altitude and loss of lift.
According to unconfirmed reports, the air show in Radom scheduled for next weekend has been canceled.
Journalists also write that a well-known Polish pilot, Maciej Krakowian, died in the crash. He was the head of the Tiger Demo Team.
– Krzysztof Grabowski (@krzyszt84690756) August 28, 2025
The AirShow international aviation exhibition was to take place on August 30-31 in Radom and is one of the largest such events in Europe, with 150 aircraft from 20 countries. However, due to the tragedy, it has already been decided to cancel the air show.
