Investigators were unable to pinpoint the cause of an F-15C crash on a sortie over the Nevada Test and Training Range last October, announced Air Combat Command. “Given the limited evidence available, the [accident investigation board] president was unable to determine a mishap cause by clear and convincing evidence,” states the investigators’ report. Assigned to Nellis, AFB, Nev., the F-15 was on a single-ship test sortie on Oct. 24, 2011. Recovering from a high-G evasive breaking maneuver, the aircraft departed controlled flight and entered a flat spin, according to the AIB report’s findings. When engines and flight control inputs failed to recover the aircraft, the pilot lowered the undercarriage in accordance with procedures, regaining control at approximately 4,000 feet in altitude. Attempting to regain flight speed, the pilot applied full power in “an aggressive recovery,” states the report. The F-15 stalled again, forcing the pilot’s low-altitude ejection near 1,400 feet. He was not seriously injured. The Eagle was destroyed upon impact on unoccupied federal land 85 miles northwest of Nellis, a loss estimated at $32 million. (AIB report; caution, large-sized file.)
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
