The State Bureau of Investigation is conducting a pre-trial investigation into the circumstances of the F-16 fighter jet crash that killed pilot Oleksiy Mes. As part of the investigation, investigators have ordered 11 forensic examinations. This was reported by the SBI in response to a request from Suspilne.
To determine the causes and circumstances of the accident, the examinations are being conducted at Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. These include a comprehensive commission forensic engineering, transport and military expertise, as well as computer and technical expertise of information from the flight data recorder, commodity, forensic and other examinations. At the moment, expert research is ongoing, the bureau said.
The SBI stressed that the final conclusions about the causes of the crash and the possible connection with the actions or inaction of individual officials or the pilot will be made after the examinations are completed and all the data and evidence obtained are analysed.
The F-16 fighter jet crash that killed pilot Oleksiy Mes took place in August 2024 during a combat mission. According to Suspilne’s source in the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, the investigation into the causes of the crash is ongoing, and it was not directly related to Russian strikes.
Representatives of the Ukrainian Air Force, speaking on condition of anonymity to Voice of America, noted that various versions of the incident are being considered, including ‘friendly fire’ from Ukrainian air defence, a technical malfunction of the aircraft or pilot error. US partners have also joined the investigation.
