Thunderbirds F-16 flips on landing

Sgt Cordova has already been released from the hospital. They'll release more details after the AIB investigation.

As Zaphod said, the F-16 has a particularly narrow landing gear, and this makes them a bit susceptible to winds of a certain strength/direction that at best can tip them so they are balanced on the nosewheel and a wingtip. If the wind is only a little bit stronger, it tips further and the entire wing area acts as a sail, pushing it over.

Hopefully this link works, it is a taxiing F-16 crossing behind a B-1 waiting at the holding point, that comes up to breakaway thrust to enter the runway.

m.youtube.com...

Captain Gonsalves has been released from the hospital.

The team is still deciding on their readiness top fly tomorrow. The Mishap Aircraft has been removed from the accident site, and an interim SIB is in place.

The latest update corrects the last one. Captain Gonsalves is still in the hospital. They have officially announced that they will not fly this weekend.

There's a video on Facebook now that shows the aircraft on a trailer ready to move. They were damn lucky. The tail snapped in half when they flipped. The worst of the damage was the cockpit area. The cockpit snapped in half between the seats.

Nearly as bad as the Spitfire that flipped on takeoff last week in France..

Is it possible he was taxiing and a strong wind gust pushed the plane off the taxi way onto the grass where the front wheel got stuck and caused the flip. From the photos it looks like it's on grass. Pretty weird haven't heard of too many jets flipping over and ending upside down.


Found this

An Air Force fighter jet skids off runway, flips over and traps two inside

He saw the jet swerve left, then right, then briefly go airborne, flip and land on its canopy. Lt. Col. Jason Heard, who leads the Air Force’s aerial acrobatics team, said the jet skidded about 300 feet off the end of the runway, and that he could not recall another incident quite like it in the Thunderbirds’ 64-year history.

www.washingtonpost.com...

Friggin whirlwind dust devil mini tornado.....dang a Cessna 172 would have been all bent to hail

a reply to: JimTSpock

a reply to: JimTSpock

That's what the damage looks like.

They leave Ohio today for Nellis. They plan practice as normal tomorrow.

And the final verdict is......Pilot Error.

The aircraft attempted to land but flew a missed approach due to standing water on the canopy reducing visibility. He went into a holding pattern for approximately 40 minutes before making another attempt. Based on the winds, he decided to fly a faster approach than normal, aiming for an approach speed of around 160 knots. The aircraft recorder showed a speed of over 190 knots as he crossed the threshold. He touched down over 4700 feet down the runway and went off the end.

www.airforcemag.com...

geeze i hope the pilots are ok and that theyre unharmed.

Thunderbirds always always made every airshow ive ever attended worth it. Awe inspiring. Hope both pilots are back in the saddle and doing what they love again soon.

a reply to: BASSPLYR

One was an airman on the team on an incentive ride. He was fine. The pilot is recovering from leg injuries.

originally posted by: GBP/JPY
I figured 80 knot side tail quartering wind gust......with vertical action embedded

I landed in the soup at Love Field with a tornado going down Royal Ln
........in the sixties.....winds 10-15 gusting to 60. Travelaire 6DM

edit on 23-6-2017 by GBP/JPY because: Cozz

Even 60 from the right direction might enough to tiddlywink
a Falcon... that's admittedly packing a lot of wing chord.
EDIT:: Then Zap comes back with a rather hot approach at least.
Maybe I wanted it to be just the wind a little much. At 190 and
dry, the wing tires'd be a little gooey. Thanks for the update I think..
PS that's not a cross wind, it's a shear doublecross

a reply to: derfreebie

Running off the end of the runway into grass will do it too.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: derfreebie

Running off the end of the runway into grass will do it too.

One more post and I have to fire up the table saw again.
(I do all my dangerous stuff 2D now)
Amen Zap. I think that's half the reason the Navy has
Pensacola-- so the terrain can eat the overshooters.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Damn. Hoping the pilot did ok. Hopefully its more the bruised up be ok in a few weeks kinda leg injuries.

Wanna see the pilot out flying with the team again real soon.