US F-16 fighter jet crashes near Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany, pilot ejects

BERLIN (AP) — An American military aircraft crashed at a U.S. air base in western Germany on Tuesday, injuring the pilot, the American military said.

In a statement, the U.S. Air Base Spangdahlem said that the pilot ejected and was receiving medical care. It also said the plane, which was an F-16 Fighting Falcon assigned to the 52nd Fighter Wing, crashed around 2:30 p.m. local time, and that the cause of the crash was being investigated.

The local German district, where Spangdahlem is located, had said earlier that fire and emergency teams responded to the incident.

Spangdahlem is home to an F-16 fighter jet squadron with about 20 aircraft, the German news agency dpa reported.

The squadron, which supports U.S. Air Force and NATO missions worldwide, is the centerpiece of the air base. The base has about 5,000 military and civilian employees, plus their family members, according to the latest figures. The U.S. air base also employs between 700 and 800 Germans.

The U.S. Air Force has maintained a presence in Spangdahlem since the mid-1950s. Along with Ramstein near Kaiserslautern in southwestern Germany, Spangdahlem Air Base is considered one of the most important airfields for the U.S. military in the region.