FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

News

France air force chief allegedly skipped weekend traffic by taking a fighter jet

There are a lot of benefits to leading France’s air force. Unfortunately for its acting commander-in-chief, borrowing a fighter jet to skip the weekend traffic is not currently one of them.

General Richard Reboul allegedly flew France’s Alphajet — a fighter jet worth around $7 million dollars — to get from his professional base in Bordeaux to his vacation home in Provence on “about 10 occasions” since August 2016, local French weekly Le Canard Enchaîné reported Tuesday. The distance between the two locations is about 600 km, and the area is entirely accessible by both train and car.

France’s Defense Minister, Florence Parly, ordered an investigation into the general’s actions Tuesday evening, also accusing Reboul of once borrowing a via a six-seater transport plane with a pilot and copilot.

“Information on the improper use of air force resources by a senior military officer has come to the attention of the minister,” the defence ministry confirmed in a statement Tuesday.

A round-trip between the two destinations totaled between 14,000 and 16,000 euros, according to calculations made by local French media and reported by the Guardian.

Times that by ten lovely weekends in Provence, and French taxpayers probably shelled out at at least 140,000 for the general’s escapades.