South Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection has released a report revealing the shocking truth behind a 2021 midair collision between two F-15K Eagle fighter jets — an incident the public had assumed was an accident. Investigators found the cause was not mechanical failure or operational error, but pilots using personal smartphones to take photos and videos during a return flight.
A "Final Flight" Turns Into a Disciplinary Scandal
According to aBBC report, the incident occurred near Daegu, a city in central South Korea. The audit found that a wingman pilot, on what he considered his final flight with the unit, pulled out a personal smartphone mid-flight to take selfies and record video — a clear breach of regulations.
Two fighter jets collide in mid-air over South Korea when pilots start taking photos and video https://t.co/fAbvNnRWIo
— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) April 22, 2026
Auditors noted that what made the violation particularly alarming was that it did not appear isolated. Investigators concluded the practice of using personal devices in the cockpit had become a tacitly accepted habit among fighter pilots — tolerated rather than reported.
When the pilot of the second aircraft noticed the wingman filming, he did not intervene via radio. Instead, he instructed his own co-pilot to photograph the wingman's jet in return. Seeking a more dramatic angle, the wingman then executed an unannounced maneuver — flipping the aircraft by pulling up sharply and inverting it — in an attempt to strike a dramatic pose for the camera, without warning the other crew.
The sudden maneuver caused the distance between the two jets to close rapidly. The second aircraft initiated an emergency descent to avoid a collision, but contact was unavoidable. The left wing of one jet and the tail stabilizer of the other were both damaged on impact.
All pilots landed safely. Repair costs reached 880 million Korean won, approximately$600,000.
The Ruling: Why Was Only One-Tenth Recovered?
The South Korean Air Force initially demanded full repayment of the 880 million won repair bill from the wingman pilot, who had since left the military to work for a commercial airline. The former officer appealed, and the court ruled he was liable for only one-tenth of the costs — approximately 88 million won, or roughly $60,000.
The court found that the Air Force itself bore partial institutional responsibility, citing its failure to adequately enforce regulations against the personal use of recording devices among active-duty pilots. The ruling also took into account the former pilot's clean service record and the fact that, despite the collision, he had maintained professional composure and returned the damaged aircraft to base safely — preventing further loss.
The F-15K is a variant of the U.S. Air Force's F-15E Strike Eagle, customized by Boeing specifically for the Republic of Korea Air Force. South Korea currently operates 59 of the aircraft. Equipped with the AN/APG-63 avionics suite, the F-15K is capable of both air-to-air and air-to-ground operations across a full spectrum of combat roles.
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