Posted on 08/11/2013 4:59:38 PM PDT by Ronald_Magnus
Footage has been released from the Randolph Air Force Base Multimedia Center, showing a T-38 C jet almost colliding with another plane. (March 17th 2005) Courtesy: Randolph Air Force Base Multimedia Center
Finally a headline that got it right instead of calling it a near miss.
skypilot,one of my best events in my AF career was a ride in a T-38 in ‘69. Pilot was Carol Bobko who later flew the shuttle. At the time he and a dozen other AF Manned Orbiting Laboratory astronauts were waiting to be reassigned after MOL was cancelled. I was their weather officer and I was reassigned to VietNam.
Larry
I know what a T-38 is, I used to fly them. If you look again at what I posted, I said the other aircraft could have been a Texan II, but it is hard to tell. The latter is the Air Force's replacement to the T-37. The aircraft in the video is a T-38C.
It was a kick in the pants, wasn't it? Good for you, and you had one heck of a pilot flying you. Did you ride in the front? The first time I went up in the T-28 (called your "Dollar Ride"), I was amazed. It felt like flying an empty beer can with Estes rockets strapped to it.
Formation flying in the T-38 was challenging, but I found formation flying in it much, much improved over other aircraft because of the T-38s raw power. You could think about getting back into position, and the aircraft would respond.
Hmmm....I think you have something there.
And yes, I am sure ATC had their hands full after this incident. However, no one died. A good friend of mine was high up in the food chain at ATC when there were 2 fatal accidents in recent years, and he was earning his pay.
During WW II, we lost more men during training accidents than we did during actual combat. Flying is a very serious business, and people quickly learn it ain't easy, especially military flying. I had flown Cessnas, Aeroncas, Pipers, Mooneys, and Beechcraft aircraft before I went to Air Force pilot training, and I thought I was pretty well ahead. But the guys with zero aviation experience quickly learned basic flying, and then it was all an even terrain. The way the military teaches you to fly is no fun and games, it is being 5 steps ahead of your next move, and there is very little border patrol or joy riding in your profile.
The instructors were brutally honest, and tough back then too. You would come back from a morning sortie, and your best friend would be packing his locker contents into a cardboard box and handing in his G-suit to Life Support. Happened nearly every day.
Looking at the video again you may be right.
Backseat, from LAX out over to Edwards and back to LAX where MOL had about three 38’s. Others who went on to shuttle were Truly, Fullerton,Crippen and Overmeyer. I got in shape running with these MOL test pilots.
when one said ‘Lets go home” what he meant was “Lets go home I crapped myself”.
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