Downed F-117 Stealth Fighter, Kosovo War

Photo courtesy of the Federation of American Scientists

It’s never a good thing to lose a state-of-the-art jet to enemy fire. But it’s even worse when that jet is a highly classified stealth aircraft – and the technology allegedly survives the crash. That’s what happened on March 27, 1999 when F-117 Stealth Fighter 82-0806 flown by Dale Zelko was shot down by a surface to air missile during the Kosovo War. The pilot was rescued, but the downed aircraft was reportedly inspected by Russian personnel before allegedly being used in the development of Russian and Chinese stealth planes. It has, however, been asserted that the then-20-year-old technology aboard the F-117 would not have proved much help to foreign governments looking to exploit U.S. technology. The jet’s canopy is currently displayed in Belgrade. Colonel Zoltán Dani, who commanded the missile brigade that downed the F-117, retired from military service in 2004 and now works as a baker in his native village Skorenovac.