U.S.: Plane Probably Hit, Lands in Iraq

Kanas.com ^ | 10 December 2003 | AP

[11th_VA]

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Guerrillas hit a U.S. Air Force transport plane with a surface-to-air missile, causing the engine to explode, a senior Pentagon source said Wednesday. The plane landed safely.

The C-17 had just lifted off from Baghdad International Airport before dawn Tuesday when the engine exploded, slightly injuring one of the 16 passengers and crew, said U.S. Air Force Capt. Carrie Clear of 447th Air Expeditionary Group, based at the airport.

The plane returned to the airport and landed safely, Clear said.

A senior Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity, described the explosion as a direct hit by a ground-fired missile, "like the DHL" incident that damaged a cargo plane departing the airport last month. That plane, too, landed safely.

[smith288]

Those surface to airs arent exactly getting the job done in taking down the infidels.

[thoughtomator]

I find it absolutely amazing that these planes can be hit by a missile and still land safely... what terrific pilots they must have.

[Spell Correctly]

Was that a French-made missile?

[No Blue States]

The plane returned to the airport and landed safely, Clear said.

Thank You, Lord. :)

[Quilla]

Amen!

[ladtx]

...what terrific pilots they must have.

Plus it's a testimony to the well-engineered and tough aircraft.

[dighton]

C-17 Globemaster III

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Was that a French-made missile?

Yeah, I think the missle was just trying to surrender to our aircraft.

[finnman69]

Adn it tells you those man portable SAMs are not the silver bullet against large aircraft they have been hyped to be. Of course a lucky shot might really do catastrophic damage, but it seems they really are designed for use against helicopters and smaller fixed wing aircraft.

[GeronL]

They should send out sniper teams right immediately looking for any TIME magazine correspondents in the vicinity!!

[finnman69]

from http://www.globalsercurity.org

The Man Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) missile is a highly effective weapon proliferated worldwide. Typically containing an IR seeker, the missile offers little opportunity for a warning before impact. Impacts are often lethal. Examples of lethality include 1) the Afghan mujahedeen killing of 269 Soviet aircraft with 340 such missiles, 2) Desert Storm evidence that IR missiles produced 56% of the kills and 79% of the Allied aircraft damaged, and 3) civil aircraft experiencing a 70% probability of kill given a MANPADS hit. Such high kill ratios are unacceptable and require immediate solutions. Recent military engagements, such as Desert Fox, demonstrate curtailment of daytime operations as a result of the MANPADS threat.

[Tennessee_Bob]

Whether it was a missile strike or a catastrophic engine failure, it's a testimony to the pilots, but also to the engineering that went into the aircraft as well.

[doodad]

what terrific pilots they must have

I'll say. Did you see the story that the DHL crew landed that plane with just engine power as all three hydraulic systems were destroyed?

[BluH2o]

Of course a lucky shot might really do catastrophic damage ...

Like the missile that brought down TWA Flight 800 for instance?

[finnman69]

I thought it was a UFO ray gun.

[Rebelbase]

And the President was such a coward for having AF1 land at night............................../sarcasm

[Wright is right!]

"Did you see the story that the DHL crew landed that plane with just engine power as all three hydraulic systems were destroyed?"

Saw the story - that's great flying by well-trained pilots. However, I don't think I'd have called the 3 hydraulic systems "destroyed." The missile simply impacted at a point which would cause a bleed-out of the fluid from all three systems, rendering them inop. But certainly not "destroyed."

Michael

[LikeLight]

I think a lot has to do with altitude - the missiles only go so high - but the higher the plane, the more pressure the airframe is under (assuming a pressurized cabin) - so I would imagine the higher the altitude at impact, the more likely it is that catastrophic damage would occur - but the terrorist must weigh this against the much better chance at hitting his target he has at the lower altitude . . .

[sarasota]

I'm trying to understand if/how we could take down these missiles before they take us down. What's the set up on ground fired missiles? How far away can they be from the target? What size is the base from which they're fired? Why can't our surveillance locate them? And so on.