C-5 crashes near Dover; injuries reported
By JEFF MONTGOMERY
The News Journal
04/03/2006
DOVER — At least 17 people were on board a C-5 that crashed into a field near Dover Air Force Base at 6:30 this morning, and some have been taken to area hospitals, base officials said.
The C-5 jet transport broke into at least three pieces, coming to rest on land east of Del. 9 near Kitts Hummock Road.
Other information those injured in the crash is unavailable.
“I didn’t hear anything. The planes pretty much sound like they’re landing in my back yard all the time,” said Tammy Powell, who lives along Kitts Hummock Road just south of the base. “Especially when they’re coming in from the south.”
Powell said she could see the site of the crash from her back yard.
“The tail’s completely gone. It’s farther behind the plane. I can see part of the fuselage and the wing,” Powell said. “There’s no smoke at all.”
All routes to the crash site were blocked this morning. Del. 9 east of Dover is closed. Motorists wanting to avoid the area may want to take U.S. 113.
Some witnesses said they saw the plane go down nose first.
The accident is the worst ever in the United States for the C-5, the nation's largest military transport. One of the big jets crashed in Germany during the buildup for the first war in Iraq. Another crashed during the American pullout from Vietnam.
I became acquainted with the Loadmaster that was on the C-5 that crashed in Vietnam. The rear pressure door blew out severing controls to the tail. After getting the AC turned using engine power, the pilot attempted to land but the AC was "porpoising" and impacted in a rice paddy about 9 miles short of the runway. They bounced over the Saigon River, impacted again and slid for a long distance. Most in the upper deck survived but many on the lower cargo deck perished. If you remember, this was a Operation Babylift flight so the passengers were orphans being evacuated from Vietnam. Needless to say, that was a heartbreaking experience for crew and all involved.