Italian Viper down in the Adriatic Sea

[james84]

An F-16 belonging to the 5th Wing of the Italian AF, baset at Cervia, has been lost offshore between Cervia and Ravenna, in the Northern Adriatic.
The pilot ejected safely and was recovered by a local fishing boat.
This is the sixth loss of 34 Vipers leased from the US as a replacement for the F-104 before the introduction of the F-35. No victim so far, luckily.
According to Wikipedia:

*MM7237 lost in Sicily in 2004 for an APU problem which led to the total loss of hydraulic and electric systems;
**MM7246 and MM7263 lost in Sardinia in 2006 due to a collision while training
*MM7258 lost for bird impact in 2007
*Another one lost in sicily in Feb 2008 after having been hit by a lightning
*Yesterday's one

[james84]

PS. the snow is falling in rome for the first time since Jan 2005!