F-18 collides with F-5... 1 pilot dead

More bad news for military aviation:

The jets collided shortly after noon on Friday about 50 miles east of the Fallon Naval Air Station.

Two pilots safely ejected from an F-5 Tiger and were rescued. But base spokesman Colonel Jeffrey Wells confirmed Friday evening that the pilot of an F/A-18C Hornet was killed. foxnews.com

My condolences to the family and friends of the pilot.

In just the last couple of years I've had enough free time to pay attention and access stories like this, has it always been this bad as far as aircraft and pilot losses?

Thats sucks.My condolences to the family of the dead pilot.Nobody said this war was going to easy.Au contraire we are in for a long tough fight or we wouldnt be in it.I now know what John Mccain meant when he said we will stay in Iraq for 100 years if need be.We will stay the course in Iraq and Afganistan.
[SNIP]

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Mod Edit:
Please see the Terms and Conditions
1g.) Political Baiting: You will not engage in politically-charged rhetoric, politically-inspired name-calling, and related right-versus-left political bickering while posting outside the Politics forums

[edit on 18-6-2008 by Gemwolf]

How the heck do 2 jets collide in the air like that? I could see if they were taking off and landing, but in the air? HOW?

Has anyone noticed the sheer amount of plane, helicopter, aerial vehicle crashes that have been reported on the mass media networks in the past several weeks?

Just a thought.

Originally posted by AlCaponed
How the heck do 2 jets collide in the air like that? I could see if they were taking off and landing, but in the air? HOW?

Formation is inherently more risky, and aircraft hitting while Air Combat Manuvering happens also. Ever seen the pics of the two F-18s that colllided and both made it back?

reply to post by AlCaponed
I don't know, but it happens.

2 F-18s January 2008

ACM is at close range. All it takes is one small mistake, and two planes will collide. We recently have lost 4 planes to ACM accidents.

As for the sheer number of losses, it's a war, and training requirements are harder than at peace. Equipment is being put to harder use, and pilots are under more stress.

Originally posted by AlCaponed
How the heck do 2 jets collide in the air like that? I could see if they were taking off and landing, but in the air? HOW?

Lots of potential scenarios, but one is, if they are headed toward one another the closing speeds are tremendous.

500 mph each = 1000 mph closing speed.

I used to fly puddle jumpers that cruised 100-120 mph and it could be tough to see similar aircraft if they were dead ahead.

If I remember right, there used to be a poster at the airport that showed the size of an F-16 two seconds out.
The differing views were what you would see from your puddle jumper.

Three or four seconds out, you couldn't see the F-16, after a few seconds it was filling the windscreen.
The F-16 got real big real quick.

A couple of military fighters mixing it up in the sky, lose track of one and it could be all over in a matter of seconds.

Bad enough complexity-wise to fly a puddle jumper, military aircraft are a whole order of magnitude more complicated and it doesn't take long to get behind the aircraft....

Why would the navy be flying a f5?like a chase plane?Or simulation?

reply to post by alienstar


F-5s have been flown by Top Gun instructors for years. They're smaller, lighter, more agile, and fly similar to Soviet fighters. They're wonderful Agressors.

Makes sense.Sad sorry about the crash,i feel for his family.

The number of mid air collisions that happen in a year in the USAF due to training is staggering. It is an issue but one that is not easy to solve or eliminate as there will always be risk in this realm of aviation which has little room for error.

www.abovetopsecret.com...
Check out the link above for a huge in-depth look at F-16 and 15 losses in both the USAF and abroad and it will give you a good sense of the dangers. *side note its a thread that you do have to move past the personal issues expressed but still has great info as I already said.

The Navy flys the F-5 for training in real life dog fight situations. The pilots that fly the F-5 are the best fighter pilots in the world.

reply to post by Justice11


I doubt this had much to do with the war in Iraq or Afghanistan or anywhere else for that matter. This was at Fallon, Nevada and it seems to be the result of a training exercise going by what they do at Fallon. Most unfortunate.

My condolences.

Mod edit:
Removed quoted politics.

[edit on 18-6-2008 by Gemwolf]

For those who think this collision is a surprise, there is a video that was popular during the last year or so that depicted, from the aircraft's HUD, the exact same kind of accident. In 1982, a USAF F-16A from Osan AB collided with a Marine Corps F-4 during a training exercise over the Yellow Sea. The F-16A got off an AIM-9 shot off while closing in on the F-4 head-on. The F-16 turned right, but the F-4 went under (tried to, at least) and hit the fuselage of the F-16. The F-16 pilot survived, but I believe both Marines were killed.

So stuff like this does happen.