Posted on 09/13/2009 9:00:50 AM PDT by Fali_G
Tragedy struck the family of late Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon again Sunday, when his son Asaf Ramon was killed in a crash while flying an Israel Air Force aircraft.
Ilan Ramon, Israel's first astronaut was one of seven crew members killed when the U.S. space shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry on February 1, 2003.
Asaf Ramon's aircraft crashed near the settlement of Bnei Haver, in the rugged terrain of the Hebron Hills. The Israel Defense Forces carried out an aerial and terrestrial search of the area for some 90 minutes before locating the crash site. Advertisement IAF Blackhawk ("Yanshuf") helicopters carrying soldiers from 669, the Air Force's elite search and rescue unit, were the first to locate the plane, and they retrieved the pilot's body.
Ilan Ramon himself was a fighter pilot in the IAF, was the youngest who took part in Israel's 1981 air strike on Iraq's unfinished Osirak nuclear reactor. He was also the son and grandson of Holocaust survivors.
People in Israel had tracked Ramon's journey into space as a welcome distraction from the violence of the second intifada; they responded to his death with shock and grief.
(Excerpt) Read more at haaretz.com ...
How sad.
Prayers for his family.
Damn. Just damn.
Prayers for this family who have endured far more than their share of tragedy. There must be a special place in heaven for those who give their lives while protecting their countrymen.
Prayers for his family and friends.
like a commercial fisherman friend, says....’When it rains it $h!ts’
my heartfelt condolences to the family.
z”l - may his memory be a blessing.
“People in Israel had tracked Ramon’s journey into space as a welcome
distraction from the violence of the second intifada; they responded
to his death with shock and grief.”
Plenty of Americans and folks from other civilized countries
did as well.
As just a “little person”, I was one of them.
The Ramon family truly understands the price of freedom.
May Providence give them comfort in this awful hour.
Prayers for him and for the strength of his family.
Amen
Sad.
Also sad that he won’t get to participate in the upcoming Iranian raid.
i’ve heard more than one person say that today, even going as far as “perhaps he was being trained for the long range Iran mission”
I think this just plays into the hands of our enemies..
He was just inducted into the IAF, would not have been used for a mission like that for a while,
We must remember that the safety of the state of Israel, is not in the hands of our meak president nor the might of ther F16’s
G-d hath given and G-d hath taken, may his name be blessed for now and eternity
RIP.
I would not say he was being trained for a specific mission. He was qualifying in the F-16, which is what all candidate F-16 pilots would do after graduation from undergraduate pilot training (and he supposedly did well).
But once he checked out in the airplane then his training might include such training at the squadron level as will be required for the Iran mission. His young age just means he would emulate his father.
And it will not be like Osirak. It will be a much larger scale, the targets being far more numerous, dispersed, and hardened.
But it will happen just the same. It’s almost inevitable. Israel’s survival depends on it. And Israel will need lots of qualified aircrews of several different type aircraft.
Hear, O Israel: the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.
May YHWH grant the family peace in their time of mourning.
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