F-15 down

A US F-15 has crashed off Okinawa. Japanese media sources are saying the pilot ejected and was rescued, other sources are saying two pilots, unconfirmed status, but all agree the pilot ejected. No word on the unit, or if it was a Mud Hen, or a C/D. This was announced in the last 15 minutes so it's still breaking.

www.almasdarnews.com...
www.express.co.uk...
www.reuters.com...
www.usnews.com...

Update: The pilot was recovered, it was an F-15C, belonging to the 18th Fighter Wing, which would make it either the 44th Fighter Squadron, or the 67th Fighter Squadron.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Hopefully the pilot wasn't injured in the ejection. Punching out of a jet isn't exactly a no-risk proposal.

You know, I realize that these are just machines, tools, as it were, but WHAT a machine.

Maybe it's just that "Engineer" mindset, but when you lose a bird like an F-15, it's kinda sad.

I've never had the opportunity to ride in a plane like that, much less pilot one, but you just have to give it up for the people who can design a machine as aesthetically pleasing as an Eagle.

Can you even imagine what an honor it would be to actually BE an Eagle driver? How awesome would it be to walk in a bar, and when someone asks you what you do for a living? Then you just point to that patch on your shoulder.

*sigh*

Sorry. I'm gushing. I'll just stop.

a reply to: MteWamp

He'll have compression injuries, and probably be an inch or so shorter for a few days. It doesn't sound like he was hurt badly though, so probably just ejection related injuries.

The Eagle has long been one of my favorites. I got to do an engine run in the back seat of a D model once. That was amazing. I wish I had the chance to fly on one, but that's the next best thing.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Damn... Honestly, I can't even START to fathom how cool that must have been.

I feel the same way. I remember the first sho-nuff airshow I went to, sometime around the mid 1970s, and it was the first time I had seen (felt, actually) anyone really wringing out an F-4. I kept thinking "Wow, this is really loud!".

Then he came back over the field with full afterburner and banked AWAY from the crowd, with the exhaust TOWARDS the crowd.

Feeling that shock wave hit my chest was my first real "Come-to-Jesus" moment with modern military aviation. My jaw damn-near dropped all the way down tho the tarmac.

If you ain't seen it in person, no description is ever gonna get you even close.

Damn. Good times.

Every time I think of that day, all I can think of is how much I regret never being on-site for a Saturn V launch.

Have had a few back seat rides over the years in Tornado GR1’s...over Germany and Sardinia...Sardinia was the best as we were toss bombing and “gunning”...awesome experience...!!! a reply to: MteWamp

a reply to: Zaphod58 Did you ever get to go up in any fast stuff?Never got to myself,but sitting in the boom compartment on takeoff and low level flyby at a airshow was damn near as good.Hungover as hell and didn`t even come close to puking even when we rotated and did a max climb.Damn,I miss airshows and those old KC10s,was the time of my life and didn`t realise it.

a reply to: ridgerunner

No. Lots of ground stuff, tankers and C-130s.

The aircraft belonged to the 44th Fighter Squadron. The 18th Fighter Wing announced a safety stand down today. The pilot is in a military hospital listed in serious condition.

thehill.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

I'm pullin for him get otta serious condition quick....he loves what he does so he's got momentum going for him

glad the pilots as ok as can be expected..

Wish I thought we were coming out of the bad times as far as plane safety, but I expect more to go into the ground before things improve.

a reply to: Irishhaf

I'm just waiting on a heavy to go in. We've gotten really lucky so far honestly.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Incredibly, the crews are not where they should be for ops or maintenance.


To many people worried about the numbers rather than safety.

a reply to: Irishhaf

After sequestration hit they did everything they could to get people to retire, without a second thought, and all the six and seven levels got out, so now we've got half trained idiots keeping our planes flying.

Off topic-Go to YouTube and look up The Stupid Log. I don't normally recommend it because most people won't get it. He's Navy, but the stuff he posts is universal. You'll laugh your ass off.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Navy had that problem in the 80's. They were getting budget cuts and needed to get rid of people so one of the things they did was to change the body fat standards. Then they made a lot of their senior enlisted get out because of it. Some got reduced pensions, others got nothing. The loss of institutional memory and experience caused numerous accidents and losses.

a reply to: JIMC5499

You don't realize how much of what is SOP isn't in any T.O. until that bites you in the ass.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Yeah I do. I remember a chief petty officer who heard one of our main gearboxes make a noise as the rotors shut down. He told me to pull the strainers and chip detectors on it. I said "Chief the bird just came out of Phase." I was told "DO IT!!!" I did and found two fractured pieces of gear teeth. Spent the next ten days in the Bahamas waiting for a gear box to be shipped over and five days putting it in. We lost that experience. If he wasn't around we might have lost the bird. I was aircrew, I might have been in it. When the Chief spoke I listened.

a reply to: Zaphod58


Ill check it out.

Happiest day for me was when my wife started out processing active duty which will let her do something other than fly in the reserves.

a reply to: JIMC5499

That was more of a generic "you" than directed at you specifically.

When my father was in, we got a jet back from the Depot it went straight to phase to fix all the crap they screwed up. The base VIP aircraft were gone over every day they didn't fly, even if it was just washing them. The years he was there, they averaged a 99.7% mission capable rate for all aircraft that fell under him.

Less than a year after he got out, we went by one of the aircraft one day, gut said they had a recurring problem with the jet, and he offered to tell them what was wrong. Guy said, no thanks, they'd deal with it after the next trip, even though it was less than two hours to fix it and they didn't leave for three days. That's the attitude now, and it's finally causing problems.

When I was a kid in the 80s I wanted to be a fighter pilot. I usually imagined flying a F-14 though, that was probably my favorite.

I also wanted to fly the F-19 that ***doesn't exist.



*** By doesn't exist I mean probably does exist secretly.


Hope the pilot of the Eagle is gonna be ok. Sucks to lose a jet but it'd suck far worse to lose a hero.

a reply to: muzzleflash

No, it really doesn't. Despite all they did to make you think it did. But that's another thread.