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Mechanic ‘Accidentally’ Fires Vulcan Cannon & Obliterates F-16 Sitting on the Runway
War history online ^ | Mar 19, 2020 | George Winston

Posted on 03/20/2020 7:08:53 AM PDT by Lazamataz

The F-16, hit by the cannon fire, caught fire and exploded having recently been refuelled and made ready for a training sortie due to take place later that day. Another aircraft received minor damage.

If anyone ever needed a reminder of the lethal dangers of working with live munitions, then a recent incident at Florennes Air Base in Belgium is the ultimate wake-up call.

It is thought a maintenance worker accidentally activated the six-barrel 20mm Vulcan M61A-1 cannon hitting another plane parked on the runway.

No-one was in the line of fire, but two technicians were taken to the medical centre on the base suffering from noise related effects

(Excerpt) Read more at warhistoryonline.com ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: a10; f16; sabotage; security; vulcancannon
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To: Jet Jaguar

I wish there was a camera on that guy to catch his reaction because I know it was a good one!!! I probably jumped a country mile! Probably blew his ear drums out and loosened up a couple of teeth.


141 posted on 03/20/2020 11:24:21 AM PDT by Mathews (Ecclesiastes 10:2 (NIV), Luke 22:36 (NIV))
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To: Lazamataz

Could have been worse. Could have taken out an F22 Raptor.

So is this an instant court martial, or what?


142 posted on 03/20/2020 11:56:00 AM PDT by Freedom_Is_Not_Free (What profits a man if he gains the world but loses his soul?)
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To: Hulka

‘-)


143 posted on 03/20/2020 12:20:58 PM PDT by TXnMA (Anagram: "PANDEMIC --> DEM PANIC")
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To: Lazamataz

I just hate when that happens.


144 posted on 03/20/2020 12:22:11 PM PDT by Kickass Conservative (Kill a Commie for your Mommy.)
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To: null and void
No Papua New Guinea man would ever consider leaving his hut without his penis sheath. That and a few feathers is about all they wore back then, and for all I know it’s still that way...

I thought that was it, but wanted to be sure.

No, it wasn't pictures of the men that were so terrible. Good people didn't take pictures of women with their breasticles on display; just not proper.

My late dad used to recall the day they met this gent when he picked them up as they were hitchhiking back to town, and their surprise when he asked where "(my dad's sister)" lived. They told him that they were her brothers, and this big soldier driving the car started laughing his butt off and not only took them back to down, but delivered them right to my grandma's house, where he was meeting my aunt.

My dad said the pictures were sort of like the National Geographic pictures of the day. Apparently ruffled a lot of feathers though.

145 posted on 03/20/2020 12:26:38 PM PDT by niteowl77
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To: Jet Jaguar; TADSLOS

the redflag pin was pulled???


146 posted on 03/20/2020 2:36:01 PM PDT by Chode (Send bachelors and come heavily armed.)
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To: Lazamataz

F16s have 20mm Vulcans.


147 posted on 03/20/2020 2:40:32 PM PDT by Trailerpark Badass (There should be a whole lot more going on than throwing bleach, said one woman.)
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To: Chode

Apparently so.


148 posted on 03/20/2020 2:41:10 PM PDT by Jet Jaguar
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To: Trailerpark Badass

I believe the A10’s 30mm cannon is called Avenger.


149 posted on 03/20/2020 2:41:49 PM PDT by Trailerpark Badass (There should be a whole lot more going on than throwing bleach, said one woman.)
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To: jpsb

“The gun in the article was most recently used on the F-14. It was develop after ww2 and used a lot on during the Korean War.” [jpsb, post 68]

Your timelines are mixed up.

General Electric developed the M-61 in the 1950s. Based on the general design invented by Dr Richard Jordan Gatling in the early 1860s, it has armed a number of US military aircraft including F-104, F-105, F-4, F-14, F-15, F-16, F-18, AC-119, AC-130, B-52H, B-58.

It arrived too late to see combat use in Korea. The F-100 likewise arrived too early to be equipped with the M-61, and was equipped with four M-39 revolver cannon in 20mm.


150 posted on 03/20/2020 4:30:12 PM PDT by schurmann
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To: redcatcherb412; Vaquero

Many years ago A work acquaintance told me how he got his purple heart. He was part of a helicopter crew. The minigun jammed. Back in The barracks he was lying on his bunk reading. The mechanic spun the barrels of the minigun to clear it. One round went off. Going threw the barracks wall Hitting the guy on his bunk in the ass. (Fleshy part).


My grandfather was involved in a bad USN gunnery accident during WW2. 5 inch gun malfunctioned during a test and fired into the stack of his destroyer. Killed a bunch of his shipmates and wounded him bad enough with shrapnel that he set off airport metal detectors for the rest of his life.

He would talk about combat but never about that accident. But no PH for that.


151 posted on 03/20/2020 4:45:54 PM PDT by lodi90
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To: Afterguard; Lazamataz
The MK 61 Vulcan is a 20mm. The Warthog is a GAU 8 30mm cannon.

Exactly. The article said mistakes, of Biblical proportions, were made, for this to happen.
Also, when I was an air traffic controller, I would be highly displeased, if they tried to park aircraft on my runways. 😀 These aircraft were NOT parked on the runway.

152 posted on 03/20/2020 4:57:45 PM PDT by Mark17 (Father of US Air Force Officer, 2/3 finished with USAF pilot training. One more phase to go.)
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To: Lazamataz

Does he get credit for shooting the F-16?


153 posted on 03/20/2020 5:08:25 PM PDT by minnesota_bound (homeless guy. He just has more money....He the master will plant more cotton for the democrat party)
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To: Ruy Dias de Bivar

#15 Chuck Yeager book he describes a gun going off by accident. He as commander at the time had the red flags put back in use that had been put away for some reason.


154 posted on 03/20/2020 5:11:07 PM PDT by minnesota_bound (homeless guy. He just has more money....He the master will plant more cotton for the democrat party)
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To: Lazamataz

Actually the A10 is one of the few that doesn’t have a Vulcan,


155 posted on 03/20/2020 8:01:24 PM PDT by Kadric
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To: ping jockey

Did you ever hear the story of how the USS Jarrett shot the USS Missouri with CIWS during the Gulf War?


156 posted on 03/20/2020 9:50:20 PM PDT by GreyHoundSailor
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To: Whenifhow; null and void; aragorn; EnigmaticAnomaly; kalee; Kale; AZ .44 MAG; Baynative; bgill; ...

p


157 posted on 03/21/2020 8:46:50 AM PDT by bitt (forget the electric chair..we're gonna need electric bleachers!)
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To: Lazamataz

Looks like the remains of Hillary’s campaign...


158 posted on 03/21/2020 8:53:30 AM PDT by shotgun
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To: Lazamataz

The cannons in the A-10 Warthogs are 30 mm, not 20mm.
“The A-10 was designed around the 30 mm GAU-8 Avenger....”


159 posted on 03/21/2020 9:32:56 AM PDT by matthew fuller (Thank God our country now has a GREAT AMERICAN President !!!)
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To: Lazamataz

Four more planes and he’ll be an ace!


160 posted on 03/21/2020 9:34:21 AM PDT by Redcitizen (Nobody needs a 10 round magazine. You need a 30 round magazine.)
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