A rapid oil leak that resulted in an engine seizure caused the April 26 crash of an MQ-1B Predator near Jalalabad Airfield, Afghanistan, according to a summary of an Air Combat Command accident report released Thursday. The Predator, which was assigned to the 214th Reconnaissance Squadron from Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz., was lost during an intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission from Jalalabad. The accident board president found by clear and convincing evidence that the cause of the incident was a rapid loss of oil resulting in an engine seizure that made the aircraft unable to maintain altitude or return to base. The Predator was destroyed on ground impact for a loss of approximately $4.61 million. There were no injuries or damage to private property. (Click here for full report; Caution, large-sized file.)
Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach said the service must improve its readiness in his first public remarks as Air Force Chief of Staff, made during a ceremony marking his ascension to the service’s top job Nov. 18.
