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This is just sad...

http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.s ... ch=88-0550

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Rest In Pieces

Laughing

Enthusiast Joined: Dec 08, 2003 Posts: 36 Status: Offline

I was at Aviano when 88-0550 went down. It was the 555th flag ship at thetime with the squadron commander actually flying his own aircraft that night. He was recovered within three hours and back in action the next night. The aircraft had an extensive history in the 555th Fighter Squadron, having also seen action in Bosnia in the early 90s.

The new squadron flag ship was selected about two months later, F-16CG 89-2035 (“35”= three nickels=Triple Nickel=555th).

On a side note; the tail was airbrushed by a 555th FS maintainer and had been taped over, to preserve the picture, for two full aircraft paint jobs. The aircraft was commonly referred to as the Neon Chicken due to the gloss white eagle head.

It deserves to be in a museum to share the history and beautiful art work on the tail; however not that museum. I should have been put in the Smithsonian! Mad

Enthusiast Joined: Jan 30, 2004 Posts: 22 Status: Offline

I was in Aviano also when it went down.

I was the last guy to do the last major inspection/teardown on the seat and inspection of the canopy.

I had a zero pucker factor occur when a Col, Maj, my SQ Commander MX Cheif, MX Super and flight chief came to the shop and asked for our a/c records.

They looked at who did the last inspection, saw it was me, and off I went for a piss test and questioning. I didn't even know the aircraft went down until just before they summoned me (while they were in the shop), someone in the shop at that time said it was on CNN. I watched and asked is the pilot OK!

I was confident about my work and knew it would do its job, but still concerned with the lives I could affect.

I didn't find out until close to 4 hrs after he went down that he was out of hostile territory. Wooohooo!

4 weeks later I had a case of beer and a party was thrown with L/S and Chute shop at the pilots home. It was touching and brings pride to the work we do.

COURT

Neat post Court, thanks for the info!

Did -0550 go down with engine problems or was it hit by hostile fire?

Enthusiast Joined: Jan 30, 2004 Posts: 22 Status: Offline

Quote:

Did -0550 go down with engine problems or was it hit by hostile fire?

A SAM exploded just aft of the engine, caused flame out and enginge would not restart. He then became the most expensive and worst glider out there.

The aircraft did not break up. He rode it down for a little while before he decided to punch.

Once he was out, he watched the aircraft go down a mile or two in front of him.

There is more to his story and it is pretty funny, but might not be details to release. Especially the ejection and evasion. I will see if I can find his story and let the published version stand. Though I am sure somethings will be missing from it.

COURT

oh, don't tease us!

A previous thread on this site has the audio from his glider trip, pretty interesting. I just didn't know exactly how he got in that predicament.

Enthusiast Joined: Jan 30, 2004 Posts: 22 Status: Offline

Quote:

previous thread on this site has the audio from his glider trip

If you know where I can find it then let me know. It would be cool to hear.

Thanks,

Court

And fill us in on what you can based on the recording will ya?

Enthusiast Joined: Jan 30, 2004 Posts: 22 Status: Offline

I went searching for an audio of the flight, I did find a good story of the account.

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Feb2000/n02172000_20002172.html

The mountain lion was funny then also, but he didn't mention that just after he landed, he pulled out his flash light to get his bearing and then put it in his flightsuits calf pocket. He then began to run from the people he thought were chasing him.

He realized that a light was flashing in front of him and thus hit the deck in a dry creek bed, only to find out that his own flash light had turned back on and that was what he was really seeing. He said it scared the living sh!t out of him.

He also said that he didn't blackout in the ejection and that the red glow from the seat was a beautiful sight.

OK I found the Audio.

http://www.1stguns.de/support/f_16_hit_serbia.mp3

COURT

I was assigned to the 55th SOS during Allied Force and I launched out the Spec Ops helos that rescued him that night. Small world huh?

Jeff

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88-0550 RIP