By Libya Herald reporter.
Benghazi, 29 March 2017:
The commander of Tobruk’s Gamel Abdul-Nasser airbase was killed along with at least two people on the ground when his jet crashed into their home this morning as it was returning to the base.
Air Brigadier Saleh Joudah was returning from a bombing raid on Derna when his fighter plane apparently ran into difficulties.
Initial reports say that a man named as Abdallah Bualia and his wife, and possibly two other members of the family, were also killed when the jet hit their house at Tarsha in Watar district, 20 kilometres south of the airbase.
The LNA has lost a number of aircraft in action over Benghazi and Derna, most recently two months ago over Ganfouda. Those opposed to the LNA have invariably claimed they were shot down while the LNA has claimed they were due to technical failures. An LNA official told the Libya Herald today that its fighter planes are old and are only kept flying by continued efforts at maintenance, often hampered by lack of proper spare parts.
The LNA have been carrying out air regular strikes on positions held by mujahideen forces in Derna for some time. These have largely concentrated in recent days on the outlying Dahra Al-Hamra district.
