An Air Force accident investigation board has determined that Mallard ducks caused a T-38 crash on Jan. 18 some 40 miles south of Memphis, Tenn. The Commercial Dispatch reports that the ducks “shattered the cockpit canopy” of the T-38, which was on a training flight out of its home base at Columbus AFB, Miss. Both the student and instructor pilots ejected safely.
The Air Force has embraced new technical approaches like open mission systems and rapid software updates for cutting-edge aircraft like the B-21 and Collaborative Combat Aircraft. Increasingly, though, the service is also working to apply these to its older, “legacy” aircraft, officials said this week.