Posted on 10/24/2009 10:49:16 AM PDT by Excuse_My_Bellicosity
HILL AIR FORCE BASE — Engine failure is to blame for the Thursday afternoon incident that saw a F-16 pilot jettison bombs and fuel tanks over the west side of Hill Air Force Base, Air Force officials said Friday.
Base emergency personnel will dispose of one unexploded bomb today by blowing it up in place. The other bomb exploded on impact with the ground.
About 4 p.m. Thursday, a male F-16 pilot from Hill’s 388th Fighter Wing had engine problems approximately 20 seconds after takeoff, causing the pilot to drop two external fuel tanks and two 500 pound Mark 82 general purpose bombs, officials said at a Friday afternoon news conference.
The pilot was on his way to a training mission at the Utah Test and Training Range and turned his jet around over Layton and Clearfield before heading to Hill’s west side.
The tanks and the bombs were dropped in a largely uninhabited area on the west side of the base, approximately 2,000 feet from Interstate 15.
One of the bombs unexpectedly exploded upon impact, destroying a small tin shed and causing a power outage on base. Power was restored Thursday evening.
The second bomb buried itself approximately 17 feet in the ground in the same general area of the base.
The pilot, whose name is not being released, landed safely on base and no damage was reported to the F-16.
Col. Scott Zobrist, commander of the 388th Fighter Wing, said it is standard procedure for a pilot to jettison munitions and fuel tanks after an engine failure.
Zobrist said when an engine fails, landing with excess weight is dangerous.
“Landing with all that extra weight could have caused the jet to go off the end of the runway,” Zobrist said. “He got to the biggest, widest area he could find and did exactly what he was supposed to do. I’m very proud of him.”
Technicians from Hill have recovered the external fuel tanks and base explosive ordnance disposal experts and emergency management teams will destroy the second bomb with explosives.
“We have determined destroying the bomb in place is the safest method to neutralize the impact to our emergency response and recovery teams, as well as cause minimal environmental impact,” said Col. Patrick Higby, 75th Air Base Wing commander. “The operation is something our EOD technicians do at the UTTR on a regular basis.”
The operation will begin Saturday morning and residents of surrounding communities may hear or see emergency vehicles, explosions, and possibly plumes of smoke as a result of the detonation.
The base’s Roy gate near the 5600 South exit of I-15 and all activities at the Hill Aerospace Museum will be closed Saturday. Explosive operations are tentatively scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. and could take hours to finish.
Base emergency management said the fuel tanks released approximately 500 gallons of fuel. Some of the fuel evaporated and the remainder impacted a remote area on base.
An environmental contractor will be used to remove the fuel by excavating the soil.
The investigation into the cause of the incident is ongoing.
Ah, the big red button on the upper left that should be labeled "Oh S!"
I suppose external stores jettison sounds better in official paperwork.
/johnny
Unit cost $268.50 (in 2000)
(wiki)
An environmental contractor will be used to remove the fuel by excavating the soil.
OH PLEASE.
>> Glad everybody’s OK.
Yeah, except for one thing - the pilot can’t sit down - his a$$ is still sore from taking a big bite out of the airplane’s seat cushion ;o)
>> Base emergency personnel will dispose of one unexploded bomb today by blowing it up in place.
Can we watch?
No doubt. When that F-16 dropped its tanks on Antelope Island last year, they determined that it was best to pick up the tank pieces and leave the fuel where it is because bacteria would break down and dispose of the fuel naturally. Why can’t they do that here?
From Salt Lake Tribune:
Military: Let nature deal with jet fuel at lake
By Mike Stark
The Associated Press
Article Last Updated: 12/20/2008 03:34:02 PM MST
SALT LAKE CITY » Military officials plan to leave alone the remaining jet fuel from two F-16 tanks jettisoned over the Great Salt Lake last week.
Hill Air Force Base officials said they’ll let natural processes break down fuel left in the soil.
Most of the fuel evaporated shortly after impact and there’s no sign that it’s building up in the water or low spots in the area, according to Col. Linda Medler, 75th Air Base Wing Commander. The process of “natural attenuation” will deal with what’s left behind, she said.
“The bacteria population naturally found in the ground is very good at breaking down and eliminating fuels from the environment,” she said in a statement.
There was an engine failure the day before at a local airport in Wickenburg, AZ that required an emergency landing. This one wound up off the runway with its landing gear collapsed: http://www.f-16.net/news_article3874.html
The engine guys are probably not having happy days right now.
To: Excuse_My_Bellicosity
And the reason this pilot is described as being a male is....
You got me. I guess the press felt the need to tell us SOMETHING about the pilot.
It’s true, we bombed our own base.
At least the landing gear worked.
The naturally occuring bacteria will eliminate the fuel from the environment in a year or so. The removed soil will be spread out somewhere where the naturally occuring bacterial will eliminate the fuel from the enviroment in a year or so.
From the Salt Lake Tribune
WTFO??!!
Emergency jettison is not supposed to arm the ordnance. I was under the impression that the bomb rack would drop off the airframe as opposed to dropping the bomb and allowing the arming wire to be withdrawn. In addition, once the arming wire is pulled it allows an air driven vane to rotate and arm the fuse. It always takes a set number of turns to arm, to give the plane time to clear the frag pattern.
There are some ground support and ordnance handlers that have a lot of explaining to do. We may well see charges on this before it’s all over.
That pointy little thingy is just decoration, each airplane has one of a color of the pilots choosing, so he/she can remember which airplane is his/hers. You know they all look alike, so it is an identifer.
Hi johnny! Cool up there?
I am in environmental due diligence and this is what is done a lot with leaking tank sites (like gas stations).
If the levels of contamination are high, the soil is removed and placed in a toxic dump. If water contamination is high, the water is pumped out, treated to remove contamination and replaced in the ground or sent to the sewer system.
If the soil contamination is low, it will be left out for the volatile organic compounds to evaporate or break down by bacteria.
After groundwater contamination is below a certain level, the natural bacterial degradation or attenuation (dilution) is allowed to occur.
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