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After mishap, IAF defends letting army men ride in fighter jets By Yuval Azoulay The air force does not intend to change its policy of allowing senior infantry officers to ride in fighter planes, despite criticism that this policy is misused. On Tuesday, one such flight ended with a multi-million dollar fighter plane being grounded, after its passenger - the head of the IDF training base at Tze'elim - pulled the wrong handle and caused the wheels to fold back into the belly of the plane. The incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon at the air force base at Nevatim. Brigadier General Guy Tzur, who was commander of Unit 162 during the Second Lebanon War and was roundly criticized for his performance, was the passenger on a two-seater fighter plane that was piloted by a lieutenant colonel. Advertisement At the end of the flight, during which Tzur was shown the capabilities of the plane, the pilot brought it to rest on the tarmac; Tzur, who was supposed to pull the lever controlling the ejector seat of the pilot, and the passenger, who accidentally pulled the lever controlling the wheels. According to air force sources, the damage to the plane was minimal and no one was injured. A senior IDF source said yesterday that, "fortunately, the accident happened after the plane had already landed. If the handle had been pulled during landing, the outcome would have been much more serious." In the aftermath of the accident, air force chief Ido Nehushtan ordered an investigation into the circumstances of the incident. At the same time, he ordered the air force to continue the practice of allowing officers from other branches of the service to ride in fighter planes. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Kafka's heir Many believe Hava Hoffe is in possession of an important literary treasure. Press doyen Eric Silver, veteran of the foreign press corps in Jerusalem, dies aged 73.

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