Kadena Pilot in Stable Condition after F-15 Goes Down in Pacific

An F-15 pilot assigned to the 18th Wing at Kadena AB, Japan, was in stable condition in a military medical facility after the crash of an F-15 on Monday in the waters of the Pacific, announced base officials on Tuesday. Japanese rescuers recovered the pilot, who had ejected from the F-15 about 70 miles east of Okinawa at about 9 a.m. local time during the May 27 sortie, they said in a release. The Air Force has not released the pilot’s name. The cause of the mishap is thus far undetermined, the officials said, noting that they would release more information as it becomes available. As a result of the mishap, the wing announced that it would suspend F-15 training at Kadena for one day. “It’s common practice to stand down training operations after a major mishap to allow aircrews time and opportunity to reflect on what happened and re-focus on training requirements,” states the wing’s May 28 release. “Every F-15 at Kadena will undergo an inspection to ensure they are safe to fly.”