SEOUL — A December 2021 midair collision of two South Korean fighter jets occurred because a pilot made an abrupt maneuver to get a better angle for videos of the flight, according to a government report from the Board of Audit and Inspection. The report ordered the pilot to pay about 88 million won to compensate for damage inflicted on the aircraft.

The pilot was returning to his base after a training mission in December 2021 and first filmed himself with a camera to mark his final flight with his unit, according to the report. Without consulting the other pilots, he then suddenly banked his jet because two fellow pilots on the other aircraft were trying to film him with a mobile phone. The other pilots had experience taking video during earlier flights.

Both fighter jets safely returned to their base after the collision, which caused about 878 million won in repair costs, the report said. Authorities ordered the pilot to pay one tenth of the total repair costs because he had informed the other pilots about his filming plans beforehand and they appeared to have given implicit consent, according to the report.

The report also found that authorities were responsible for the collision for failing to strictly restrict such filming among pilots. The Board of Audit and Inspection's findings applied responsibility both to the individual pilot and to the supervisory structures that allowed in-flight filming to go unregulated.

South Korea's air force apologized over the findings. The pilot was disciplined and had his flight duties suspended. The air force said it will study steps to prevent similar incidents in the future.