Posted on 06/02/2016 1:51:56 PM PDT by pnz1
SMYRNA, Tenn. (WKRN) A U.S. Navy Blue Angels jet crashed Thursday afternoon in Smyrna ahead of their weekend air show at the citys airport.
A La Vergne official confirmed the accident happened around 3 p.m. near Weakly Lane, not far from the bowling alley.
LifeFlight helicopters from Vanderbilt University Medical Center were called to the scene.
Further details have yet to be released.
(Excerpt) Read more at wkrn.com ...
Wow! God Bless Him.
But I thought Martin Baker seats were 0-0 rated. Couldn’t he have ejected at the last second? May or may not have helped but....
Tennessean is saying Navy confirmed pilot died in crash.
They are now saying the pilot was killed in the crash.
Yea, that’s what I was commenting on. They said he stayed with the bird to avoid collateral damage.
Prayers up.
The pilot who died has been identified and Marin Capt. Jeff Kuss.
OMG honest am in shock...... this is so horrible.
Prayers up for the pilot and family. One of my best memories of vacationing at the beach. They would do practice runs up and down Ft. Morgan many mornings. One day I got up early and strolled down to the beach. It was really quiet and no one around. Heard the engines roaring and I started waving a towel. By golly, if he didn’t come back and put on a show for me! It was incredible! <3. Really made my year!
Prayers up.
I was there too Green Lantern, the article said the 1981 crash was not visible to the crowd but I saw a huge cloud of dust and made the comment that I thought one crashed - nasty looks from those around but it did happen, the pilot nosed his jet into the ground to save hundreds parked outside the gate. He died and a horse was decapitated. The following year six Thunderbirds crashed in formation at Nellis AFB.
We were on Pensacola Beach a few years ago prior to the show they do in July on the beach. They did a practice run-through of the show one morning. It was amazing..
They really are awe-inspiring! And whoever that was who came back for lil’ ol’ me for a show was such a sweetheart. Never forget it. It was around 1990.
My BIL is a retired AF pilot. He was the one who told my to run down there with a towel. Said if the pilot saw me he’d ‘show off a bit’. He did! :)
Follow the chain down long enough and you’ll find either affirmative action or money lining pockets as the cause.
RIP
Capt Jeff Kuss, USMC
Blue Angel pilot
RIP.
What would cause a pilot to not eject?
Seems like everything is going to pot under this admin.
God bless his soul and give comfort to his family.
reportedly he rode the plane down to keep it away from houses... if he’d ejected the plane would have been more likely to hit an inhabited area.... he is a true HERO.
Oh wow. I didn’t know that. What an amazing heroic man.
I remember noticing that Thunderbird Six was suddenly not there, then smoke at the south end of the runway.
I also remember the crash video on TV when we got home.
My Dad had to have a friend of his take my brother and I home. He was a senior officer at the base and was involved in the initial investigation of the crash that evening.
Prayers for the family of the pilot.
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