Spanish Eurofighter Jet Pilot Accidently Fires Air-to-air Missile during Drills

A Spanish fighter jet pilot accidently fired an advanced medium range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM) during a mock drill close to the Russian border.

The Eurofighter Typhoon multi-role fighter, part of the Spain-Estonia’s alliance’s air-policing mission erroneously fired an AMRAAM-type missile during mock drill at Tartu, an Estonian town 30 miles west of the Russian border on Tuesday afternoon, Agence France Presse news agency reported Thursday.

The projectile has a built-in self-destruct system designed for such accidents, but Nato believes it may have landed on the ground.  Juri Ratas, Estonia's prime minister, called the incident “extremely regrettable" but confirmed there were no human casualties.

“I am sure that the Estonian defence forces will, in cooperation with our allies, identify all the circumstances of the case and make every effort to make sure that nothing like this happens again,” he added.

The Typhoon – also flown by the UK’s Royal Air Force – was taking part in drills alongside a second of its type and two French Mirage 2000 jets, the agency reported.