Free Republic

A multi-million-pound fighter jet exploded and another was damaged when a mechanic accidentally opened fire from a third plane during maintenance. The F-16 Falcon jet, worth around $19million (£15million), was destroyed in the blaze as it was parked at a military base in Belgium and the second plane sitting next to it suffered fire damage from the on-board Gatling cannon. Two technicians working on the Belgian Air Force stealth planes were said to have been injured in the incident at the Florennes air base, 60 miles south of Brussels, on Thursday afternoon.