“High-performance training requires risk-taking,” says former War College director

An accident between two Rafales took place on Wednesday in Meurthe-et-Moselle.

A pilot and his instructor are still missing after the collision between two Rafales in Meurthe-et-Moselle on Wednesday August 14. “We cannot hope to have extremely efficient training if there is no risk-taking, and unfortunately sometimes a few accidents“, Vincent Desportes, former director of the War School, professor at Sciences Po and HEC on franceinfo.

Early Wednesday afternoon, two fighter planes from the Saint-Dizier air base in Haute-Marne collided. The accident occurred in the Colombey-les-Belles area, in Meurthe-et-Moselle, a town on the edge of the Vosges department. Despite the very strict procedure and rules during these air force training exercises, it is impossible to predict everything, explains Vincent Desportes. “If everything went as planned, it wouldn’t be real life, and especially in military discipline, we know that nothing happens exactly as planned,” even with one of the most solid military training courses in the West, insists the former director of the War College.

“When you’re in a Rafale, flying at the speed of sound and carrying out a complicated exercise, it’s rare that everything goes as planned.”

Vincent Desportes, former director of the War School

on franceinfo

It is however “rare” And “regrettable” that this type of training accident exists, it happens more often during air shows, like in May 2022 in Cognac-Châteaubernard, in Charente. The investigation will demonstrate if there were “an excessive risk-taking” during this training, but accidents, “There will always be, simply because to be good, you have to train, take risks, fly close to each other”certifies Vincent Desportes.