Son Of Shuttle Columbia's astronaut Ilan Ramon Killed In Flight

by Yuliya Talmazan | September 14, 2009 at 08:48 am

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The son of the Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon who died in Space Shuttle Columbia disaster six years ago was killed in a training flight. Lt. Asaf Ramon, 21, was a pilot with Israeli Air Forces. He was killed on September 13 during a routine training flight aboard F-16 airplane. Asaf Ramon graduated from the IAF flight school just three months ago.

Asaf Ramon's father was the first and only Israeli astronaut. He and six other crew members died upon shuttle re-entry in February of 2003. Iran Ramon left a wife and four children behind.

His jet crashed in a remote hilly region south of Hebron on Sunday night, the military said. The cause of the accident was unclear.

The crash elicited emotional responses from Israeli leaders. The military chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, arrived at the family's home along with the air force commander after news of the crash was made public, and the country's defense minister, Ehud Barak, said he was "heartbroken."

According to Avi Blozovsky, editor of Hayadan, the only dedicated science news site in Hebrew, after the death of his father, the young Ramon said he hoped to be an astronaut and continue the legacy of his father.