From correspondents in Quito, Ecuador

March 26, 2009 07:06am

A FIGHTER pilot who survived the crash of his jet plunged to his death with a rescuer after a cord broke as they were being pulled up to a helicopter.

The Ecuadorian pilot, identified as Rafael Durango, and an unidentified co-pilot had earlier ejected safely from their MK-89 Strikemaster before it crashed into a heavily jungled area near the Colombian border yesterday.

Ecuadoran military officials said two helicopters were sent to recover them.

But an air force official later said the rescue went awry as Durango and a rescuer were being lifted up to one of the hovering choppers.

"A cord that was attached to a helicopter broke and the pilot and one of the rescuers fell, dying in the rescue operation,'' the official said.

The second pilot was successfully rescued, the official said.

Colonel Hugo Lanas, an Ecuadoran air force spokesman, said earlier that the MK-89 Strikemaster was on a training mission in northeastern Sucumbios province when it crashed.

There is a heavy military presence in the area because of frequent incursions by Colombian guerrillas.

The MK-89 is a British-built jet-powered training and light attack aircraft.

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[ed. note: from the looks of the MK-89, the fact that his ejection seat even worked - and that he survived the canopy penetration in the jungle - made him the luckiest guy in the world for a short while. Sad he didn't make it.] 

On a slow news day, here's a story that illustrates the rule of unintended consequences. Max, a springer spaniel and very successful drug dog based in Devon, UK recently passed away from a rare form of nose cancer. The suspected cause? Years of snortin' coke and other illicit drugs in his line of work. (Max retired from police work last year due to severe arthritis and is seen hooked up to his prosthetic trolley in the photo.)

His handler, Police Inspector Anne Higgins remarked, "It is ironic the wonderful organ that made him successful in his work has been his demise." Now that's quite a quote...