A Polish F-16 fighter plane has crashed killing the pilot during a practice flight.
The flight on August 28 was a part of preparations for the Radom International air show scheduled to take place on August 30. It has now been cancelled after what was the first F-16 crash in Polish aviation.
The accident occurred during a training flight of the Polish Air Force’s F-16 Tiger Demo aerial display team involving a barrel roll manoeuvre. The plane crashed and exploded and as the pilot was unable to eject from the aircraft, he was killed.
🚨BREAKING 🚨
Dramatic and horrifying footage as a F16 fighter jet crashes and bursts into flames training for an upcoming Air Show. The pilot was killed instantly
— OC Scanner 🇺🇸 🇺🇸 (@OC_Scanner) August 28, 2025
“No bystanders were injured,” the General Command of the Polish Armed Forces said. “The pilot did not survive; no one else was harmed.”
Polish Armed Forces Command identified the pilot as Major Maciej “Slab” Krakowian, who was the leader of the display team. Earlier in August he was awarded the As the Crow Flies Trophy by aviation enthusiasts for the “best overall flying demonstration” at the 2025 Royal International Air Tattoo, the world’s largest military airshow.
An experienced combat pilot with more than a thousand F-16 flying hours, Krakowian was an instructor at the 31st Tactical Air Base near Poznań. He was a graduate of the Aviation training institute in Dęblin and the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs..
According to Poland’s armed forces, in addition to his display flying, Krakowian had also undergone specialist training and flown in numerous international missions.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz travelled to the scene.
“I am at the scene of the tragedy. In the F-16 plane crash, a pilot of the Polish Army lost his life, an officer who always served his homeland with dedication and great courage.
“I pay tribute to his memory. My deepest condolences to his family and loved ones. This is a great loss for the Air Force and the entire Polish Army,” Kosiniak-Kamysz, wrote on X.
