Free Republic

Part 1 Watching the Presidential debates of October 1st, and the subsequent reactions to them, has left me once again with the sad realization that there are many millions of people who prefer a man who says the wrong things well over one who says the right things badly – and in the case of the first debates we are talking about saying very, very stupid things well and intelligent things very, very badly. Now I don’t mean stupid in a bad way. I fully credit John Kerry with the intelligence needed to analyze, dissect, and evaluate a position and...

Story Number: NNS040827-01 Release Date: 8/27/2004 8:21:00 AM NORTH ISLAND, Calif. (NNS) -- An F/A-18C Hornet pilot from Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 151 is in stable condition at Naval Medical Center, San Diego, after safely ejecting from his aircraft Aug. 26 at approximately 8:45 p.m. The Hornet, embarked aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), was on an approach to Naval Air Station (NAS) North Island. The pilot was unable to stop his aircraft and ended up just beyond the runway. The aircraft is now partially submerged near the runway in San Diego Harbor. The pilot was recovered by the San...

Two F-18 military jets collided in midair above the Columbia River in the Arlington area, scattering debris and causing a fiery explosion, according to witnesses and the Gilliam Co. Sheriff's Office. Witnesses said the military jets that collided looked like this Navy F-18 Hornet. Authorities said at least two people have been recovered at the scene and parachutes were also spotted, indicating that some crew members may have ejected. Witnesses said it appeared that at least one person was killed in the crash. Oregon State Police, detectives with the Gilliam Co. Sheriff’s Office and a rescue boat are on the...

By Peter Ciancone/Tribune-StarMay 19, 2004Members of Terre Haute's 181st Fighter Wing, Indiana Air National Guard, continued to search for clues Tuesday to help determine what caused a mid-air collision that killed one pilot and slightly injured another.Capt. John Puckett, spokesman for the 181st, said the unit controls the crash sites, one in Indiana near Oaktown in Knox County, and the other east of Russelville, Ill., pending the arrival of the aviation investigation board that will study the mishap.That board had been assembled, and is expected on-scene today, Puckett said.Until it arrives, Joint Forces Headquarters in Indianapolis asks the public to...

By James W. CrawleyUNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER March 30, 2004 NANCEE E. LEWIS / Union-TribuneAlfred Greenman (left) and Josh Rosenberg rescued two Navy aviators who had ejected from a crippled F-14D Tomcat fighter jet off the San Diego coast yesterday. Josh Rosenberg and Alfred Greenman hardly notice the jets that roar overhead while they help train sea lions off the San Diego coast. Not until about 11 a.m. yesterday, when a "loud bang" interrupted their work and plunged them into the rescue of two Navy aviators who had ejected from their crippled F-14D Tomcat fighter. Within minutes, the pair had fished...

Pilot ejects, breaks ankle; TVA says jet hit power lines SPRING CITY, Tenn. — A Navy F-18A fighter jet crashed near a rural highway yesterday, but the Navy was unsure if the pilot clipped power lines over a lake before he ejected and suffered a broken ankle. Lt. J.G. ''Ken'' Shade, commander of Naval Reserve Force Public Affairs in New Orleans, said the pilot, Navy Reserve Cdr. Kevin T. Hagnstad, broke an ankle when he ejected from the one-seat training jet that crashed near U.S. 27 about 10 a.m. CST. A Tennessee Valley Authority spokeswoman said high-voltage lines 75 feet...

<p>SPRING CITY, Tenn. — A Navy F-18 fighter jet (search) on a training mission crashed Monday, but the pilot ejected and was taken to a hospital with a broken ankle, authorities said.</p> <p>The one-seat plane, based at the Naval Air Station Atlanta (search), went down about 11 a.m. and hit some trees about 30 miles north of Chattanooga, the Navy said. No one on the ground was injured.</p>

The Sept. 14 crash of a USAF Thunderbirds demonstration team F-16 at the Gunfighter Skies 2003 airshow has been blamed on pilot error. The accident investigation board, headed by Col. Robert Beletic, released the results of its inquiry into the crash last Wednesday, determining that the pilot, Capt. Chris R. Stricklin, misjudged his altitude before beginning a Split-S maneuver after taking off as the last Thunderbird plane to launch during the team's planned airshow demonstration. It was the last event of the airshow. More than 35,000 people watched in horror as the plane slid into the ground and exploded just...

AVweb has confirmed that the image last Thursday posted to our Picture Of The Week section of Capt. Christopher Stricklin's Sept. 14, 2003, ejection from Thunderbirds jet number 6 -- roughly eight-tenths of a second before aircraft impact -- is in fact authentic. It was shot by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III, Still Photographer, U.S. Air Force, from the catwalk atop the tower at Mountain Home AFB, and was not officially released by the Air Force until last Friday afternoon. For the photographically inclined, Staff Sgt. Davis said he shot images with a Nikon DX1 camera using a...

Two military jets crashed in the Atlantic off Beaufort, S.C., Wednesday. The pilots were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard and brought safely back to land, authorities said. The Coast Guard began searching after getting reports from vessels that saw flares about 8:40 a.m., said Lt. j.g. Will Whitehead of the Charleston Coast Guard Base. He said the F-18 fighters were based at the Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station

9/19/2003 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AFPN) -- Air Force investigators determined an F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed after at least one Spot-billed Duck was ingested into the engine, resulting in catastrophic engine failure, according to a report released Sept. 18. The May 29 crash happened off the end of the runway at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The mishap pilot was the wingman in a two-ship formation on a night-training mission at the time of the accident. The pilot and a Korean on the ground were slightly injured in the crash. According to the report, shortly after taking off,...

My friend was talking about video that shows the pilot waving to the crowd just minutes after the crash in Boise. Apparently the footage is really impressive. I have searched the heck out of the internet and I just cannot find any pics and vids. It is almost as if they have been pulled for a reason??? If you have any links, I would greatly appreciate it

The Thunderbirds are the main attraction at the Gunfighter Skies Air Show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base. Their 30-minute program was set to begin about ten minutes before 3:00 Sunday afternoon. That performance was cut drastically short because of tragedy just after takeoff. “He was doing a max climb with a Split-S Curve,” said Thunderbirds Commander Lt. Col. Richard McSpadden Before the fighter pilot of Thunderbird jet 6 could come out of the curve, he ejected from the cockpit, seconds before his F-16 hit the ground and erupted into flames. A shocked and silent crowd watched and waited....

Air Force Thunderbird Crashes At Idaho Air Show By Editorial Staff and Associated Press BOISE - Most of video cameras were focused on the first four Thunderbirds at the "Gunfighter Skies" air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base. But it was the last one that people here will never forget. An Air Force F-16C plowing into the ground before 85-thousand stunned spectators. The pilot maneuvered the jet into a dive and steered toward the crowd. Then seemed to suffer engine failure when he pilot tried to pull up, witnesses said. Will Hannold saw the devastation firsthand, "I...

<p>MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho (AP) -- A jet in the Air Force's elite Thunderbirds flight unit crashed at an air show Sunday, but the pilot ejected with only minor injuries and no injuries on the ground were reported.</p> <p>About 85,000 spectators looked on as one of the six Lockheed Martin F-16C Fighting Falcons performing crashed during the "Gunfighter Skies 2003" air show at Mountain Home Air Force Base, about 50 miles southeast of Boise.</p>

An F-16 Thunderbird went down at an airshow near Boise. Pilot ejected right before impact and is OK. Pretty dramatic video available, if anyone can find a link.

US F-16 fighter jet crashes From correspondents in Seoul September 9, 2003 A UNITED States airforce F-16C fighter jet crashed off South Korea's south-western coast today and the pilot aboard was missing, a US military spokesman said. The F-16C Fighting Falcon, assigned to the 35th Fighting Squadron based in the US airbase in Kunsan city crashed about 10:05 am (11:05 AEST), 90km south-west of the Kunsan airbase, the spokesman said. At the time of the incident, the plane was on a routine training sortie, he said. "The condition of the pilot was unknown at this time," he said, adding a...

The Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea Sept. 8 — An American fighter jet crashed into the sea during a training flight in South Korea Tuesday, and its lone pilot ejected safely, the U.S Air Force said. The F16 belonging to the 35th Fighter Squadron was on a routine training mission in southern South Korea when it went down about 555 miles southwest of the Kunsan Air Base, the Air Force said in a news release. It said the cause of the crash was being investigated. The plane "went down over water" and the pilot "looks OK," said 1st Lt. Herb...

<p>HIGHER DENHAM, England -- As his fighter jet spun out of control off the coast of England, Robert Schwab grabbed the ejection handle and thought, "Oh, God. I hope it works."</p> <p>Then, he yanked. Instantly the Lt. Commander in the U.K. Royal Navy reserve, on a routine test flight, was rocketing upward at 80 feet per second. Within two seconds, he was jerked by the parachute that had shot from his seat, while his plane plunged to the sea far below. A few minutes later, the 45-year-old pilot, though a bit roughed up, was floating calmly on the same waves, in a rubber dinghy that had popped from his pack and inflated automatically.</p>