Mechanic Steals F-16 in Norway, Crashes

An aircraft mechanic on Tuesday stole an F-16 jet fighter he was untrained to fly and crashed it into a vacant farm minutes after taking off from an air base, the military said. He was missing and believed dead.

The aircraft exploded in the crash, engulfing a farm building in a fireball, said Lt. Col. Svein Fredriksen of Norway’s Oerland air base, from where the plane was taken. There were no reports of injuries to anyone on the ground.

Rescue helicopters found no sign that the Belgian mechanic had ejected, but search crews found no trace of him at the crash site, Fredriksen said. The identity of the mechanic was being withheld until his remains were found and his family notified, the officer said.

It was not clear if the mechanic accidentally or intentionally crashed.