That's gotta be one tough landing.
Posted on 05/30/2007 11:41:37 AM PDT by KeyLargo
F-15 Fighter Jet Crashes In Southwestern Indiana Officials: Pilot Ejected, Thought To Be Uninjured
UPDATED: 2:24 pm EDT May 30, 2007
VINCENNES, Ind. -- A Missouri National Guard F-15 pilot ejected safely from the aircraft just before it crashed during a training mission in rural Knox County Wednesday morning.
The plane went down at about just before 11 a.m. EDT south of Vincennes, near the Illinois border, as it conducted standard training maneuvers, according to a release from the National Guard.
The plane was affiliated with the 131st Fighter Wing, which is headquartered at Lambert Field in St. Louis.
Capt. Jim Jensen with the Indiana Air National Guard in Terre Haute said the pilot apparently was able to walk to a police officer and was taken to Vincennes Hospital to be checked.
"It sounds like he's fine," Jensen said.
The aircraft was conducting standard training maneuvers as part of a four-aircraft formation. No other aircraft was damaged, Missouri Air National Guard Capt. Tamara Spicer said.
Capt. Jamie Melchert, a spokesman for the Missouri National Guard, said there were no reports of injuries on the ground.
"We're thankful and fortunate for that," he said.
The Air Force will convene a safety investigation board, which will take at least 30 days to reach a conclusion about what caused the crash.
Investigators said the plane was flying at about 20,000 feet prior to the crash. The pilot had been with the 131st Fighter Wing for 12 years and was highly experienced, officials said. The unit had most receontly enforced no-fly zones in Iraq.
Members of the Indiana Guard's 181st Fighter Wing were heading to the site to secure it, the Indiana Guard said.
Witness Willie Mayberry told Evansville television station WFIE that he saw two jets dogfighting before the crash.
"I saw one of them make a loop and start to lose altitude," he said. "Then all of a sudden I saw the pilot eject, the seat separated from him and I saw the parachute open. Then all of the sudden, the jet hit the ground. I saw a billow of black smoke and then a big old ball of fire."
The F-15 Eagle is an all-weather, extremely maneuverable tactical fighter, according to an Air Force fact sheet.
The crash is the third of a fighter jet in southern Indiana since 2001.
On May 17, 2004, two F-16 fighter jets from the 181st Fighter Wing collided during routine training near the Indiana-Illinois state line. One of the pilots was killed, and the second parachuted to safety.
In July 2001, an F-16 from the 181st Fighter Wing crashed near Parkersburg, Ill., about 70 miles southwest of Terre Haute. The pilot ejected safely.
Minus 25.
Didn’t know ‘bout this.
I just happened to watch a TVO weekly titled, “Escape! Because Accidents Happen” that is a sub-set of their weekly “Heavy Metal” series. This particular show dealt with the history of aircraft ejection seats.
They showed current/present development of automatic ejection-seats. Yep. I’m pretty sure all you guys would appreciate that.
Is there an E-ticket ride somewhere that does eSeat? Becaue I’m going to stay away from that ride.
I was amazed at how fast a B25 accelerates on takeoff...a zoomer for it’s size.
Then improved engines, better cannons, and proximity shells blew their theories literally out of the sky. Though, in their defense, foretelling the future is usually impossible.
Military Innovation in the Interwar Period is a dry, but good read on this topic.
The B25 is a fast ship with great acceleration. This is why COL Doolittle chose it for the raid on Tokyo from an aircraft carrier. Some of these lighter bombers, like the B25 and Mosquito, were so fast that they could go in and out of an area before the enemy could respond.
That's gotta be one tough landing.
Glad the ground-pounders were safe, but realistically, there ain’t much on the ground out there to hit.
Good also to see the pilot was able to walk out - too often the bailout injuries are pretty serious.
Thanks for the ping.
While we may joke about other services, pilots have my respect. If any ground vehicle I am in blows an engine, loses hydraulics, or has an electrical failure, I just pull over. A plane has the unfortunate habit of not failing on the ground with the brakes on; then you take off.
This was all over our local news last week. If one engine self destructs it can sling parts through the compressor on the other. No amount of fire retardant will put out a magnesium fire.
That can happen ... we’ll see what the verdict here is.
Solo tank crashes, however, often tend to end up with a shorter, but rather more dramatic, fall from grace.
Fall from the road.
Slide from the road.
Into the ditch.
Into the river.
Out of the ditch.
You know, tanks generally don’t fall very far. Nor very fast. Just very firmly. 8>)
Reminds me of a new driver I had as a 2LT just after my tanks brakes were fixed (too well)...... One concussion and smashed teeth later... Well, at least I hooked up with this cute girl.....
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