Posted on 07/09/2016 6:37:51 AM PDT by r_barton
WASHINGTON – A Delta Air Lines jetliner with 130 passengers on board landed at the wrong airport in South Dakota Thursday evening, said a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the incident. The Delta A320 landed at Ellsworth Air Force Base at 8:42 p.m. Central Time Thursday, when its destination was an airport in Rapid City, board spokesman Peter Knudson said Friday.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
A big X means the runway is closed, permanently (a worldwide convention).
Ellsworth is an active AFB. They probably wouldn't appreciate that.
Same thing has happened in Tampa on multiple occasions. The runway for the international airport is parallel to MacDill AFB and less than 10 miles apart. Delta has had at least two Tampa-bound flights land at MacDill in the last 15 years.
The airline’s most embarrassing “wrong airfield” incident happened in Kentucky. Flight bound for Frankfort landed in Lexington which is more than 30 miles away.
Who can we address that defiiciency to?
Red “X”. . .not a good idea:
https://www.google.com/search?q=%22X%22+on+a+closed+runway&biw=853&bih=399&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj7kszF1ubNAhXMLSYKHb_HAFQQsAQIMg
To pilots, “X” means closed.
The U.S. use to have 1,054 ICBMs. With the Start treaty we now have only 431 ICBMs (Minuteman III) according to Wikipedia. So I wonder if Ellsworth has any ICBMs left.
Ellsworth is home to the 28th Bomb Wing, a B-1 outfit. B-1s no longer have a nuclear mission. The nukes in the Dakotas are at Minot, with the 5th Bomb Wing (B-52s) and the co-located ICBM wing.
Why did they give it clearance instead of telling them to get their butts over to the civilian airfield?
I really don’t get it. Even the GPS in my little Citabria has a line from point A to point B. When the line ends, I’m at point B. It’s just like the GPS in your car, only the routing lines are straight and Betty doesn’t tell me I’ve arrived at my destination.
I donno. . maybe write your Senator and Congressman and see if you can get them to support placing SAMs and AAA at US military bases.
Don’t think you will find much support, though, especially when civilians occasionally inadvertently land at a military bases, or intentionally land at one (see my post 77).
In this case, I’d hate to have seen all those civilians killed. . .but that’s just me.
“AF Blue?” Where, when? AFSC?
"....how bout 10 ft high blinking letters saying "Rapid City that-a-away"....and of course in the PC Spanish smaller type....and since...what about a Tap Dancing Hyena cartoon like giant gif. On a giant screen pointing towards Rapid City for the occasional gay pilot"
Current U.S. nuclear forces (Wikipedia)
Minuteman III ICBMs - 431
Trident II SLBMs - 230
B-2 bombers - 12
B-52H bombers - 68
Husband was active duty air force for 13 years. In the article it said that the personnel that boarded the plane made all the passengers lower their window shades. I understand not wanting civilians to get a look at the planes on the flight line, but our oldest daughter’s first response was “ they didn’t want the passengers to see all the officer’s outside playing golf.”
It happens but last time I talked to pilots this would have been the death penalty Maybe things have changed..... Of course it is probably also different if one is a favored minority. I’m glad to hear one mistake with no injuries does not end a career
Thier missile wings were deactivated during the SALT treaties.
START treaties.
Years ago, I was on a United flight from Spokane to Chicago. The plane lost an engine and we had to do an emergency landing in Rapid City. Once on the ground, we learned that the plane was too tall for the walkways and the Air Force was sending over one those trucks with the staircase in the bed to get us off the plane. I was thinking that we'll be stuck on this plane for another hour. It only took about 10 minutes for the truck to arrive.
That’s standard for unauthorized personnel on the flightless. They are lucky they weren’t frog marched off the aircraft with bags on thier heads and M-4s in thier backs.
I was a crew chief and nothing made a SP more happy than to watch you cross the red line. Spead eagle, face down.
Didn’t.
Flightline. Darn autocorrect.
These runways were what, 3 or 4 miles apart so someone
wasn’t paying attention to what they were doing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.