IAF officer Lt. Assaf Ramon, the son of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon who died in the 2003 fatal Columbia mission, was killed on Sunday after the F-16 he was piloting crashed into the southern Hebron hills.

IAF commander Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan and head of the IDF Manpower Division Avi Zamir personally went to Rona Ramon's house to deliver the news.

The story of the crash and the identity of the pilot resonated widely throughout the IDF and particularly in the Air Force where Ilan Ramon was a legend.

"This is shocking," said one senior IDF officer.

The cause of the accident was under investigation and was complicated by the large crash scene. Officials said that the debris was spread over a large piece of land near the settlement of Pinei Hever.

Sunday's flight was his 47th flight since finishing the IAF pilots course in June, Channel 10 reported...

...Assaf Ramon announced his plans to follow in his father's footsteps shortly following the Columbia tragedy. In 2006 he enlisted in the IDF and successfully passed the IAF's grueling examinations and trials for the prestigious pilot's course.

Assaf was the valedictorian of his class which graduated in June. Several months ago, during a routine training flight in a Skyhawk A4, Ramon encountered a technical failure when the engine suddenly died. Instead of ejecting, like protocol dictates, Ramon, together with the flight instructor, succeeded in restarting the engine and safely returning to base.