news brief IDF military helicopter crashes off Mediterranean coast near Haifa, two pilots dead

Two Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pilots were killed late Monday night when their military helicopter crashed off the coast of northern Israel during flight training. IDF search-and-rescue teams retrieved the two pilots from the water but were unable to resuscitate them.

The two pilots were Lt. Col. Erez Sachyani and Maj. Chen Fogel.

Sachyani, a 38-year-old father of 3, served as the deputy commander at the Ramat David Air Base. Fogel, 27, was as a pilot and deputy commander in the 193rd Squadron at the same base. Following his death, he was promoted from the rank of captain to major, the IDF said.

A third crew member, an aerial observer, was moderately injured and evacuated to Rambam Medical Center in Haifa, where he was in stable condition. According to hospital officials, he will be moved from the shock ward to the intensive care unit for further treatment.

The Israeli Air Force has temporarily discontinued all flight training exercises while the crash is under investigation.