HonoluluAdvertiser.com

Posted on: Sunday, February 3, 2008

Crash grounds Guard’s F-15 jets

By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer

The 13 Hawai’i Air National Guard F-15s that were cleared to fly on Jan. 9 are grounded again – except for air defense missions – following the ocean crash Friday of an F-15D.

The pilot, still unidentified by the Air Guard, is at home after he ejected from the Eagle fighter as it lost altitude and control 60 miles south of O’ahu at about 1:37 p.m., officials said.

“He’s not able to grant any interviews yet because of the investigation going on,” said Capt. Jeff Hickman, a Hawai’i National Guard spokesman. “Also, he’s not ready to talk about it yet.”

That pilot did not suffer any broken bones and was alert and walking after being rescued by Coast Guard swimmers.

The Hawai’i Air National Guard’s 20 A, B, C and D model F-15 jets were grounded three times between early November and December after a Missouri Air National Guard F-15C broke apart on Nov. 2.

The pilot ejected and suffered a dislocated shoulder and shattered arm.

Thirteen of 20 Hawai’i Air National Guard F-15 fighter jets stationed at Hickam Air Force Base returned to the air on Jan. 9 after all were examined.

The 199th Fighter Squadron’s remaining F-15 Eagles had remained grounded and were awaiting clearance from Air Combat Command on the Mainland before Friday’s crash and what amounts to a fourth grounding.

A Safety Investigation Board will be convened this week to investigate the circumstances surrounding the crash and make a recommendation to prevent similar occurrences.

The Air Force has said in the past that such a board can include pilots, maintenance personnel and airframe specialists from around the Air Force and Defense Department.

Hickman said they will interview the pilot, and listen to flight recordings before the $28 million jet crashed.

The pilot has been taken off flying status and will assist with the investigation, Hickman said.

The Safety Investigation Board will have about 30 days to investigate and forward conclusions to the convening authority, but the results won’t be made public.

Because the crash is defined as a “Class A” mishap involving costs exceeding $1 million, an Accident Investigation Board also will be convened after the safety investigation.

It also will have about 30 days to report, the results of which will be released to the public.

Hickman said the Coast Guard recovered a small amount of debris from the crash site and the life raft that the pilot used after ejecting and parachuting into 12-foot swells.

Hickman said there will be no routine training flights in the 13 F-15s that were previously cleared to fly, but the “alert” mission for homeland defense sometimes involves practice launches.

The 199th Squadron has 27 pilots who fly the F-15.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.

F-15 crash is unlike earlier one, says general

Plane that crashed had passed safety inspection 3 weeks ago

STORY SUMMARY »

A safety team arrives this week to investigate Friday’s F-15 crash south of Oahu, but the Hawaii Air National Guard’s 154th Wing commander said the cause does not appear to be related to structural problems that grounded the Air Force’s entire fleet of F-15s in November.

Brig. Gen. Peter Pawling said the fighter in Friday’s crash was in one piece before the crash. The pilot of the plane was able to eject safely and was released from the Queen’s Medical Center to recuperate at home, a guard spokesman said.

Military analysts said Friday’s crash underscores the Air Force’s need to replace the fleet in the near future.

FULL STORY »

By Gene Park
gpark@starbulletin.com

Although an investigation into Friday’s F-15D crash is ongoing, the Hawaii Air National Guard’s 154th Wing commander said he doesn’t believe the crash was related to the structural problems that grounded all Air Force F-15 for two months.

The F-15D jet that crashed was just put back into service three weeks ago, after undergoing safety inspections.

“The airplane (in Friday’s crash) was still in one piece,” said Brig. Gen. Peter Pawling, commander of the 154th Wing, of Friday’s crash 60 miles south of the Honolulu airport. “There was no inflight breakup.”

All 676 Air Force F-15s were grounded in November after an F-15C broke in two during a training flight in Missouri. An investigation concluded that a defective aluminum beam in the frame cracked.

Hawaii’s F-15s are about 30 years old and were acquired in 1987.

But Pawling said it’s too early to link the plane’s age to the crash, pending the ongoing investigation.

“It could very well be true, but it’s something we’re going to have to scrutinize,” Pawling said.

The Guard has yet to decide whether to retrieve the jet from the ocean bottom, although Pawling said he would like it retrieved. The F-15D models cost about $29.9 million each.

U.S. Coast Guard was able to recover two trash bags and two trash cans full of debris, said Capt. Jeff Hickman, spokesman for the Air Guard.

A safety investigation team comprised of Air Force and Guard officials will assemble in Hawaii this week to investigate the crash.

The plane’s pilot ejected safely at about 1:37 Friday afternoon. The pilot said he could not control the plane and started to lose altitude before the crash, Maj. Gen. Robert Lee said Friday. The plane experienced no problems during a routine exercise earlier that day.

All training missions involving the fighters have been halted, including a mock aerial combat test with the Navy’s newest F-18 Super Hornets.

Pawling said he aims to resume training by Thursday, but wants to focus resources on gathering more information about the crash.

“It’s kind of an emotional experience for us,” Pawling said. “So this will give us a chance to regroup a little bit before we get back into the flying business.”

Hawaii Air Guard F-15s remain on duty to fly, if needed, for air defense missions, Lee said.

The Air Force cleared 13 Hawaii-based F-15s to return to flight duty on Jan. 9. But seven fighters remain grounded pending certification from the Pentagon.

Friday’s crash is the fifth F-15 crash since May of last year.

Some experts who follow military readiness say Friday’s incident is another indication that the F-15 needs to be replaced.

The fighters were designed during the Vietnam War, said Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute, an Arlington, Va.-based public policy think tank.

“The F-15 fleet is starting to literally fall out of the sky,” Thompson said. “Even before the planes started crashing, they were flying on flight restrictions because of metal fatigue.”

It’s too early to tell what Friday’s crash may mean for the F-15s future since the cause has not been identified, said John Pike, director of Virginia-based online database GlobalSecurity.org.

“Having said that, these planes have been around for a long time,” Pike said. “You can foresee a time when they’re going to phase out the F-15.”

The Air Force would like to replace the F-15 with the new F-22. Hawaii’s planes are scheduled to be replaced in 2010.

But the F-22 program is under fire because of its cost — about $159 million per plane.

Recent F-15 crashes

Friday’s F-15 crash here was the fifth crash since May of last year. The other incidents were:

» Nov. 2: A Missouri Air National Guard F-15 broke apart in midair, injuring the pilot. The cause was blamed on structural problems.

» June 26: An F-15 from the Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Fighter Wing went down in the Pacific Ocean during a training mission with other aircraft, killing the pilot.

» June 11: an F-15C fighter collided in midair with an F-16C and crashed near Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska during a training exercise.

» May 30: A Missouri Air National Guard F-15 crashed in southwestern Indiana during a training mission with the Indiana Air National Guard.

Source: http://archives.starbulletin.com/2008/02/03/news/story02.html

F-15 jet crashes into sea off Oahu

The National Guard pilot is safe after he ejects and parachutes into the roiling water

STORY SUMMARY »

The pilot of a Hawaii Air National Guard fighter jet is reported in good condition after he ejected safely yesterday afternoon from an F-15D that crashed into the ocean about 60 miles south of Honolulu Airport.

The fighter jet, which had been returned to service just three weeks ago, was on a routine training mission at about 1:37 p.m. when the pilot lost control of the plane and ejected, officials said.

A Coast Guard team rescued the pilot at 2:15 p.m.

The Air Force grounded all of its F-15 Eagle jets following the catastrophic failure of a Missouri-based F-15C jet in November.

Thirteen of Hawaii’s F-15s were returned to service Jan. 9 after being cleared for flight. Another seven planes are awaiting clearance.

An investigation into the Missouri crash concluded that a defective aluminum beam in the frame cracked. Another probe found that more than 150 of the military’s F-15s also had the flawed beams.

The Hawaii Air National Guard has halted all training flights but will continue to fly missions related to the defense of the islands, said Maj. Gen. Robert Lee, Hawaii National Guard commander.

FULL STORY »

By Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.com

The Hawaii Air National Guard halted all training missions by its F-15 jet fighters after yesterday’s crash off Oahu’s southern coast, the first in the Guard’s history, said Maj. Gen. Robert G.F. Lee, state adjutant general.

The F-15s “will still continue to maintain the alert status to provide air defense for the state of Hawaii,” he said, which includes periodic alert flights.

The F-15D jet fighter that crashed yesterday was one of 13 Hawaii Air National Guard jets that returned to service Jan. 9 after extensive inspections.

The Air Force grounded all 676 F-15s worldwide after an F-15C broke in two during a routine training flight in Missouri in November. An investigation concluded that a defective aluminum beam in the frame cracked. Another probe found that more than 150 of the military’s F-15s also had the flawed beams.

Seven of the 20 Hawaii-based F-15s belonging to the Air Guard’s 199th Fighter Squadron remain grounded pending word from Washington, Lee said.

The Hawaii Air National Guard pilot ejected safely at about 1:37 p.m. and was in good spirits and in good condition after his rescue, said Capt. Jeff Hickman, a spokesman for the Hawaii National Guard.

“It was the first time we’ve had a pilot have to eject and lose the plane” since the F-15s were acquired in 1987, Lee said.

The pilot, whose identity was not released, had extensive flight experience, Lee said.

The pilot said he could not control the plane and started to lose altitude before the crash, according to Lee. That was when he made the decision to eject and parachuted to the water 60 miles south of Honolulu.

Lee said the plane had experienced no problems during a routine training exercise earlier in the day.

An investigation, likely to take 30 days or more, is under way into the cause of the crash, Hickman said.

A Coast Guard rescue swimmer hoisted the pilot aboard a helicopter at about 2:15 p.m. yesterday about 60 miles south of Honolulu Airport and flew him in good condition to the Queen’s Medical Center for observation, authorities said.

Helicopter pilot Lt. Will Johnson said two other F-15 pilots maintained contact with the downed pilot, reported he was in the water but uninjured, and assisted in locating him.

There was no sign of the jet, but they found the bright green dye marker the pilot left, he said.

Rescue swimmer Petty Officer Dave Burns jumped about 15 feet from the helicopter into 10- to 12-foot swells.

“He was already sitting in his life raft, just waiting for us to pick him up,” Burns said.

The downed pilot walked off the helicopter at Queen’s and shook everyone’s hands.

“It’s definitely a good day when you can bail out of a plane and walk away,” Johnson said.

The Coast Guard dispatched two helicopters and a C-130 plane from Air Station Barbers Point after being notified of the crash at 1:45 p.m. The Coast Guard also sent out the Ahi, an 87-foot patrol boat, and the Kukui, a 225-foot buoy tender, whose crews checked for pollution and debris.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Source: http://archives.starbulletin.com/2008/02/02/news/story01.html

HonoluluAdvertiser.com

Posted on: Saturday, February 2, 2008

Crash raises scrutiny of F-15 fighter jet

By William Cole and Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Staff Writers

The ditching of a Hawai’i Air National Guard F-15D fighter yesterday was at least the fifth crash nationwide for the Eagles since May and will result in even greater scrutiny for an aging aircraft that has been grounded several times in recent months.

The fighter crashed yesterday in the ocean 60 miles south of O’ahu at about 1:37 p.m. after the pilot lost altitude and control, officials said.

“The pilot ejected. He’s safe,” said Capt. Jeff Hickman, a Hawai’i National Guard spokesman.

Hickman said there were two of the twin-tail fighters doing routine “air-to-air” training.

Two Coast Guard cutters were on the scene of the crash, and the pilot was picked up by helicopter and taken to The Queen’s Medical Center, where he was in good condition yesterday evening.

The National Guard did not release the pilot’s name or age, but said he was an experienced pilot.

The pilot’s family was with him at Queen’s and officials said he was in good spirits.

The outcome was far different than the crash of a Missouri Air National Guard F-15C in early November in which the aircraft broke apart and led to a worldwide grounding of the F-15 fleet. The Missouri pilot’s arm was shattered and his shoulder was dislocated.

The Hawai’i Air Guard pilot did not suffer any broken bones.

“He’s a tough guy,” Maj. Gen. Robert G.F. Lee, the head of the Hawai’i National Guard, said of the pilot. “He was up, walking around, smiling, had his family there – so we’re all happy that he’s in good shape.”

Lee said the pilot, who was flying solo in the twin-seat aircraft, “was getting to the point where he said, ‘Hey, I’m getting kind of low, if I can’t control it, I better punch out.’ ”

Lee said he couldn’t release altitude information, but the pilot was “at the low end” of the minimum for ejecting. His ejection seat parachute deployed properly.

Three rescue aircraft crews from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point and crewmembers aboard the Coast Guard cutter Ahi, an 87-foot patrol boat, immediately responded to the incident. The Coast Guard was alerted at 1:45 p.m., a release said.

“He seemed OK for having just crashed,” said Coast Guard rescue swimmer Dave Burns, who hoisted the pilot out of the seas with swells up to 12 feet. “It just seemed like he was ready to get out of there. He wasn’t injured. He wasn’t disoriented.”

Burns said the pilot was in a life raft when the Coast Guard arrived. The rescue swimmer jumped into the waves, swam over to the jet pilot and made sure he was OK.

The pilot thanked the crew several times after the rescue, Burns said. Once the helicopter landed, the pilot was able to walk, he said. Coast Guard Lt. Will Johnson, the pilot of the Coast Guard helicopter, said there
was an oil sheen in the water and a smell of oil in the area around where the fighter pilot was rescued.

But Johnson said he saw no wreckage from the downed F-15.

The rescue was Burns’ first time saving someone in the water. “We train for this type of stuff,” Burns said. “I’m just glad the guy was OK. It was a good day for both of us.”

Lee, the state’s adjutant general, had thanks for the Coast Guard, “because as soon as our (operations center) called, their help was there in short time to pick him up.”

Hickman said the second F-15 maintained visual contact with the downed pilot.

Crewmembers from the cutter Ahi, the cutter Kukui, a 225-foot buoy tender, and Coast Guard aircraft crews were remaining on scene to check for pollution and debris.

A crash investigation will take at least 30 days, officials said.

The F-15 is part of the 199th Fighter Squadron, 154th Wing of the Hawai’i Air National Guard.

Before yesterday, the squadron was approaching a record 80,000 hours of accident-free flying in the F-15, Hickman said earlier. Around the late 1960s, a Hawai’i Guard F-4 Phantom pilot did have to eject because of a fuel problem, he said.

The F-15s serve in a homeland defense role for the state. The aircraft also are available for worldwide taskings.

The 63-foot-long F-15s, which can fly faster than 1,875 mph, or Mach 2.5 plus, were deployed to Iraq in 2000 for no-fly-zone duty and patrolled the skies above Honolulu after the 9/11 attacks.

Thirteen of 20 Hawai’i Air National Guard F-15s stationed at Hickam Air Force Base returned to the air in mid-January after the fighters were grounded worldwide on Nov. 3. The day before, an Air National Guard F-15C in Missouri experienced catastrophic structural failure and broke apart in flight during basic maneuver training.

The entire U.S. Air Force F-15 fleet was grounded after the Nov. 2 Missouri crash. The A through D model jets were cleared to fly, but then were regrounded on Nov. 28, and again in early December after another problem aircraft was found.

The newest model, the F-15E, continued to fly and is being used in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In June, an F-15 from the Oregon Air National Guard crashed in the Pacific Ocean on a training mission. Also in June, one of the jets crashed near Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. And in May, an F-15 went down in southwestern Indiana during training.

The Hawai’i Guard’s seven other F-15 Eagles remain grounded and await clearance to fly from Air Combat Command on the Mainland.

Hawai’i has A, B, C and D models that are on average 25 years old, officials said. The plane that crashed was a newer D model F-15 valued at $28 million.

The Hawai’i Air National Guard first received F-15s in 1987, replacing F-4 Phantoms.

The Hawai’i aircraft flying yesterday has two seats, although officials said there was only the one pilot in the crashed aircraft.

Guard officials said they did not believe the F-15 crash was related to ongoing training at Kane’ohe Bay.

The Navy said last month that F-15 Eagles were to be used in an adversary role as eight U.S. Navy F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet jets from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Nine were conducting flight operations at Kane’ohe Bay through Feb. 20.

The Navy was to work with the Hawai’i Guard’s 199th Fighter Squadron to test the Navy’s newest fighter aircraft technologies. The Guard’s 199th Fighter Squadron also was expected to conduct operations in and out of the air facility throughout the testing period, said Navy Lt. Mark Huber, a public affairs officer.

The F-15s at Hickam will be replaced by F-22 A Raptors with stealth technology starting in late 2011.

A Coast Guard rescue crew hoisted a downed F-15 Hawai’i Air National Guard pilot from waters about 60 miles south of O’ahu yesterday afternoon. The unidentified pilot was not hurt.

The Washington Post contributed to this report.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com and Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.
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