The South Dakota Air Nationwide Guard’s 114th Fighter Wing has had its second F-16 fighter jet touchdown accident in lower than a month, with a jet skidding off the runway Tuesday afternoon.
In keeping with the Air Power press launch, an F-16C went over the sting of the runway upon coming back from a coaching mission at 4:17 p.m. native time Might 31. The incident remains to be underneath investigation by an interim security board, the press launch said.
Photographs from the Sioux Falls Argus Chief present the nostril cone of the F-16 within the grass, the fighter jet laying haphazardly off the runway and down what seems to be a ditch.
“The pilot has been assessed and launched by emergency crews and the scene has been turned over to the 114th Fighter Wing incident commander,” the press launch said.
The primary incident final month additionally noticed an F-16 skidding off the runway, leaving the fighter jet nose-down within the grass. The pilot was unhurt.
“Regardless that we practice to do that day by day, there may be nonetheless danger concerned. We’re grateful that nobody was harmed on this incident,” Col. Mark Morrell, 114th Fighter Wing Commander, mentioned in an announcement following the Might 11 incident.
Each accidents occurred at Sioux Falls Regional Airport.
There have been different current coaching accidents involving F-16s inside the Air Nationwide Guard this 12 months.
In March, an F-16 assigned to the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard crashed in Louisiana whereas conducting coaching out of Texas. The pilot safely ejected.
The Air Power suffered three F-16 mishaps in fiscal 2021 — one in every of which destroyed the airplane and killed its pilot, in response to the Air Power Security Heart.
About three Combating Falcons have been totaled every year on common for the previous decade, although it’s not but clear whether or not the injury to the F-16s in South Dakota will likely be categorized as such.
The service owns about 900 F-16C/D airframes, which have flown because the Eighties. Every jet price $19 million in 1998 {dollars}, or greater than $30 million now.
Rachel is a Marine Corps veteran, Penn State alumna and Grasp’s candidate at New York College for Enterprise and Financial Reporting.
