Crew treated after ejecting from S.C.-based Marine jet

Sun Journal ^ | 2-23-15 | Drew Wilson

[smokingfrog]

The two-person crew of a Marine Corps jet is safe after a crash Sunday near Statenville, Ga.

The F/A-18 Hornet was with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 224 based out of Beaufort, S.C., and was part of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing at Cherry Point, according to Michael Barton, deputy director of the public affairs office at Cherry Point.

The pilot, Maj. Rick Nicka and the weapons officer, 1st Lt. Robert Reynolds, ejected from the jet and were treated for minor injuries at South Georgia Medical Center 19 miles away in Valdosta, Ga., according to a release.

Barton said the plane had conducting low altitude tactics training when it went down. The incident happened in the Moody MOA, a military operations area.

The crash happened about nine miles east of Statenville, Ga., which is about five miles north of the Georgia-Florida state line. No injuries were reported on the ground, according to Deputy Bill Brogdon, of the Echols County Sheriff’s Department.

Personnel from Moody Air Force Base along with the Georgia Forestry Commission and the Echols County fire and rescue departments responded to the crash, according to the release.

Brogdon said the jet went down on private land about a mile and a half from 90-year-old Freddie Lou Register’s home, mother of the twins Chester and Chandler Register, the first ones to find the downed airmen.

[GeronL]

I don’t think these planes are really made to go low and slow unless they are landing.

Hey guys, that Hornet is no replacement for an A-10 or an Apache

[Hulka]

That in-and-of-itself is a violation of peacetime training regulations. In combat the rules are different. Friend of mine was flying his A-10 as a wingman during a peacetime training mission along the east coast: he was looking at lead and behind while the fight lead looks out front. . .the flight lead called for a radio channel change to an ATC freq and when my friend looked inside for a sec to change channels he drifted low, looked up, saw TREES in his windscreen. . .hit the trees and flew out and up and called his flight lead; “Hog 11, I just hit a tree”. . .the usually busy ATC freq immediately went silent. . .everyone was stunned as that kind of call doesn't happen all that much.

I almost hit the ground myself a time or two.

It happens.

We don't what happened here.

[Hulka]

Flying low level is a training mission. . .and no, they are not going ‘slow’ when they do that.

[driftdiver]

No we don’t know. Just seems more likely to my amateur eye. If it were an F16 I’d say it was the engine.

[GeronL]

good point

[Kenny Bunk]

I don’t think these planes are really made to go low and slow unless they are landing.

Nonsense, my good man. As a former crop duster, I am looking forward to buying an F 18 on the surplus market and re-entering the business. No more of that 80 mph stuff for me! Do they have a USB port for my I-Pod?

[GeronL]

Lol

I am sure the civilianized version will