Ex-IDF Pilot Killed in Plane Crash While Instructing Student

Eran Peleg, a 75-year-old resident of Kfar Sava and a former fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, died yesterday in a plane crash in the Wadi Ara region near the village of Kafr Qara. Peleg, who held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the reserves, later transitioned to the technology sector as a startup entrepreneur. At the time of the accident, he was instructing a 33-year-old student pilot. The pair had taken off from Megiddo airstrip in northern Israel when their aircraft crashed in an open area near Kafr Qara. The plane caught fire and was completely destroyed, with the blaze spreading to a nearby grove and towards residential homes. Firefighters managed to bring the fire under control. MDA emergency services received the report of the crash at 9:12 AM yesterday. The student pilot, who sustained burns to his limbs, was rescued from the aircraft and transported to Rambam Hospital in Haifa, where his condition was initially reported as serious but later updated to moderate after examination. Peleg also served as a flight instructor at the "Sky Flight" flying school. Police and the Aviation Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau are investigating the circumstances of the crash.