Terrifying Footage Shows Plane Crash Into The Sea Off Spanish Beach

A pilot has died after crashing a military plane into the sea near a beach in Spain.

Footage shows the Spanish Air Force C-101 nosediving into the sea in La Manga at around 9.40am this morning (26 August).

The Spanish Ministry of Defence said emergency services recovered the body of pilot Commander Francisco Marin Núñez from the Mediterranean Sea, according to Spanish newspaper, El Pais.

It was initially thought there could be two people on board the aircraft, however, the Ministry of Defence confirmed there was only Marin Núñez in the plane, though he appeared to have ejected himself prior to impact.

The mayor of San Javier, José Miguel Luengo, confirmed the crash took place in La Manga, according to El Pais.

The beach from which the crash was filmed is popular with tourists, and emergency services received more than 100 calls shortly after the plane plummeted into the sea, with debris from the aircraft washing up on the shore, as well as a strong smell of gasoline.

Marin Núñez was conducting a training flight for the Air Force Academy when he crashed, though Civil Protection do not yet know why the plane crashed, according to El Pais. Authorities have launched an investigation.

It comes after seven people were killed in midair collision between a plane and a helicopter over Majorca yesterday (25 August).

PA

A German family of four were among those killed, along with the Italian helicopter pilot and a Spanish man and his friend, who were in the microlight plane.

It is not clear how the accident occurred, as visibility was good at the time of the collision.

Spain's Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, expressed in a tweet his 'solidarity and affection for the families of the victims who have lost their lives in this tragic accident'.

Topics: Plane, World News, travel

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey