Posted on 09/02/2009 10:36:54 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
F-16Is grounded for inspection after one suffers engine failure
YAAKOV KATZ
Israel Air Force commander Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan decided Wednesday night to temporarily ground all F-16I fighter jets from training operations after a jet experienced engine failure earlier in the day and made an emergency landing.
The F-16I - called the Sufa (storm) in the IAF - is one of the most-advanced fighter jets in the air force, the last of which arrived in Israel earlier this year.
The incident occurred Wednesday afternoon when the engine of an F-16I, on a routine flight, experienced an unusual engine malfunction. The pilot decided to shut down the engine and made an emergency landing at the Ramon Air Force Base in the Negev.
Israel bought 102 two-seater F-16Is, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, in 2001. The plane reportedly has a 2,100 kilometer combat radius.
After the emergency landing, Nehushtan decided to ground the planes so they could all be inspected. Military sources said the grounding would be lifted on Thursday morning.
This is the second time that the plane has been grounded. In March 2008, the IAF decided to ground all F-16Is after formaldehyde was found in the cockpit of one of the aircraft.
The decision to suspend training flights was made after a number of pilots complained of a bad smell coming from the cockpit of one of the planes. The IDF Medical Branch conducted tests and discovered that the smell was caused by a type of formaldehyde known to be carcinogenic in high concentration.
This story is doubtful.
It seems like every other time I’ve read about an engine failure on an F16, or any other single engine fighter, it was followed by an ejection and a crash.
If you are high enough you can fly a flame out approach using a hydrazine (sp?) emergency power unit. I believe the high key for the approach is at 10,000 feet above the runway and is a large circle to land.
Plus a 10,000 foot runway to land on and the Negev desert in southern Israel as a back stop.
Here is a dead stick landing by an F-16: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3KL0cuZc-8
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