Report: Wrong turn led to midair collision

[maddog65]

I couldn't find the original article here on the forums telling about the accident but here is the final report.
View Article and picture Here
Report: Wrong turn led to midair collision

By Joshua Stewart - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Aug 21, 2011 8:35:06 EDT

A collision between two F/A-18E Super Hornets last year was the simple result of a pilot calling for a hard turn to the right, but heading left instead.

The jets collided March 15, 2010, over the Naval Air Station Fallon Range Training Complex, Nev. The pilot who made the error was able to land the severely damaged plane while the other was forced to eject, suffering mild but lingering back pain from the parachute landing.

“A review of all available evidence supports a conclusion that this mishap was the result of an aircrew error on the part of” one of the pilots, according to a command investigation obtained by Navy Times through the Freedom of Information Act.

Who exactly in Strike Fighter Squadron 137, the “Kestrels,” was responsible for destroying a $57 million aircraft and damaging another is unknown — the Navy redacted the names of the pilots from the report. The pilot who made the error was referred to as a male lieutenant commander while the pilot who was hit was identified as a male lieutenant.

The Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif.-based squadron was at Fallon for a three-week training program. The March 15 flight was supposed to prepare the pilots for a night self-escort strike mission. Preparations were uneventful, and the four single-seat Super Hornets took off at 9:15 p.m. with the lieutenant commander as the flight lead.

Shortly after takeoff, they moved into a “wall formation” with the Super Hornets four abreast, putting 1.2 nautical miles between the two planes that eventually would collide. The lieutenant commander was flying one of the two inside planes.

“90-right, go,” the lieutenant commander announced, signaling everyone to turn.

While the three other planes turned right, for some reason the lieutenant commander turned left. About 11 seconds later, the side of his plane collided with the lieutenant’s at 792 knots.

Immediately after the hit, the lieutenant heard voice alerts warning of fires in both engines, saw fireballs in both cockpit rearview mirrors and hydraulic cautions on the Super Hornet’s digital display. A moment later, he ejected at 16,000 feet above sea level, parachuting into waist-deep snow as his plane crashed into the side of a Nevada mountain. He used his parachute as a blanket and was rescued after about 90 minutes on the ground.

He was treated at a local hospital for hypothermia as well as mild acute compression fractures in the upper thoracic vertebrae, lower back pain, a bony contusion in the left knee as well as scrapes and bruises from the landing. The pilot was released after nearly six hours, but a month after the mishap wasn’t medically cleared to fly. It’s unclear whether he has since returned to flight status.

The lieutenant commander, meanwhile, completed emergency procedures and landed at Fallon. The plane had extensive damage to its right side, including the leading edge extension, right horizontal stabilizer, complete removal of the outboard portion of the right wing from the wingfold hinge out, shrapnel holes and damage to the pylons underneath the right wing.

The Navy puts responsibility for the mishap on the lieutenant commander.

“No evidence was found to suggest willful violations, gross negligence, or criminal conduct on the part of any aircrew in the (flight). No evidence was found to indicate any maintenance, scheduling, or gross supervisory errors,” according to the report.

The Navy could not locate a portion of the mishap report that makes recommendations for punitive actions or new safety procedures, leaving the status of the career of the aviator who performed the wrong maneuver, or suggestions to prevent similar mishaps from happening again, unclear.

[MIKE JG]

You're other right!!!!!

[Victory103]

It's easy to do in tactical formation fight, or TACFORM, of course we have a crew of 4, so I hope the other 3 know which way to turn.