Col. William Wignall, the head of the accident investigation board reviewing the mid-air break up of a Missouri Air National Guard F-15C on Nov. 2, 2007, believes the message radioed by the training sortie’s flight lead “was probably the most chilling call that I’d ever heard.” The flight lead delivered his message in a calmer voice than when he frantically urged Maj. Stephen Stilwell to eject. His words to the other two fighters on the training sortie were, “Mick 2’s airplane just broke in half.” (Read more in Adam Hebert’s report)
The Pentagon agency charged with building and operating U.S. spy satellites recently declassified some details about a Cold War-era surveillance program called Jumpseat—a revelation it says sheds light on the importance of satellite imaging technology and how it has advanced in the decades since.
