A candidate for Air Force flight training and an instructor pilot were injured Monday when their Diamond DA-20 trainer aircraft crashed near the Memorial Airport in Pueblo Colo., during touch-and-go landing drills. The Pueblo Chieftain reported Sept. 9 that the airplane tumbled down a ravine and landed upside-down in a dry creek bed. Both pilots were taken to local hospitals; their identities were withheld pending notification of family. Doss Aviation owns the DA-20. The company is under contract to the Air Force to screen and offer initial training to about 1,800 flight-school candidates each year, according to the Denver Post’s Sept. 8 report of the incident. The Air Force and FAA will investigate the mishap.
Airmen and Guardians in the Active and Reserve component, as well as civilian employees, in “mission critical and high-risk populations” are now required to receive influenza vaccinations annually to “preserve force readiness,” according to a recent Department of the Air Force memo.