Forum: F-16 News

Dunno why, but that thing looks Photoshopped, i swear that tail is a lot bigger than that.. Overall though, it is a sad ordeal, having been there crewing Vipers, them coming back was something we always were positive about.

Here is the video that I am guessing was shot just shortly after the jet crashed, the end of it is kinda graphic so be prepared, it shows the body of the pilot bloodied and motionless.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The U.S. military said Tuesday it has not found the pilot of an Air Force fighter jet a day after it crashed in Iraq.

The pilot, who officials have not named, has been classified as "duty status and whereabouts unknown," said Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, who spoke at a Tuesday news conference. Coalition aircraft reported that insurgents were in the vicinity of the crash site at the time the jet went down.

U.S. Central Command Air Forces said the recovery of the pilot is among its "primary concerns," according to a news release distributed Tuesday. (Watch charred and smoking wreckage that is purported to be of the crashed jet )

"The pilot was not found at the crash site, and his status cannot be confirmed at this time," the Air Force statement said. "The investigation board has collected DNA samples from the crash site and will release results upon completion of testing."

The Air Force F-16CG fighter jet crashed Monday outside of Baghdad while flying on a low-level "strafing run" -- firing on targets on the ground at a low altitude -- a U.S. military official in Baghdad said.

"Coalition reconnaissance assets and fighter aircraft were overhead when the crash occurred and confirmed that insurgents were in the vicinity of the crash site immediately following the crash," the statement said. "Ground forces secured the crash scene Monday, as soon as the combat operations in the area ceased."

The aircraft was carrying one pilot when it went down at 1:35 p.m. (5:35 a.m. ET) about 20 miles northwest of the Iraqi capital, according to a U.S. military statement. Immediately following the crash, the military did not say if the pilot survived.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

A Pentagon source said the plane was operating near Falluja, which is about 30 miles west of Baghdad.

Al-Jazeera, the Middle East-based television news network, has aired video showing what it said was the smoldering wreckage of the F-16. The video shows pieces of the aircraft including the tail which displays the aircraft's number and an "Air Combat Command" logo.

It said the video was shot in Karma, which is about nine miles (15 kilometers) northeast of Falluja.

Mohammed Al-Obeidi, an Iraqi who lives in the nearby town of Karmah, told The Associated Press he saw the jet flying up and down erratically before it nose-dived and exploded in a farm field.

He said other U.S. warplanes rushed to the crash site and were circling around it.

The F-16 was deployed to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad Air Base, Iraq.

By Tonya Fennell and Sharna Johnson: CNJ Staff Writers

CANNON AIR FORCE BASE — An F-16 that crashed Monday in Iraq was from Cannon Air Force Base, but base officials said the plane’s pilot was not from Cannon. “All of our Cannon pilots are accounted for,” said Cannon Public Information Officer Capt. Rebecca Garcia.

Garcia said she had no information about the pilot’s fate or the cause of the crash, which occurred about 20 miles northwest of Baghdad in a mission supporting coalition ground combat operations.

Garcia referred questions regarding the pilot’s home station to the 9th Air Force, which serves as the U.S. Air Forces, U.S. Central Command. Officials from the 9th Air Force could not be reached Monday evening.

Part of the 27th Fighter Wing from Cannon, the 524th Fighter Squadron has operated from Balad Air Base in Iraq since being deployed in September, Cannon officials said.

Garcia said she could not address troop numbers for security reasons.
Base officials confirmed Cannon markings were apparent on news photos and television images that showed sections of the single-pilot aircraft.

Garcia said she was not familiar with procedures in Iraq and could not answer why a non-Cannon pilot would be flying a Cannon jet. She said at Cannon they try to associate one pilot with one aircraft. However, she said Cannon pilots do fly different aircraft at the base all the time, mostly when mechanical problems arise with their assigned aircraft.

The crash occurred at 3:30 a.m. New Mexico time in an uninhabited field in the Anbar province, nine miles north of Fallujah, according to Capt. Tiffany Payette of the Central Command Air Force Public Affairs office.

“There is no indication of injuries on the ground,” Payette said, “but the status of the pilot is unknown.”

Mohammed Al-Obeidi, who lives in the nearby town of Karmah, said by telephone he saw the jet flying up and down erratically before it nose-dived and exploded in a field. He said other U.S. warplanes rushed to the area and circled above the wreckage.

Al-Jazeera television showed videotape of the wreckage in a field and what appeared to be portions of a tangled parachute nearby; the broadcaster said the video included scenes of a dead pilot but they were too graphic to air.
Cannon has lost seven F-16s in crashes since 1997, according to newspaper records.

The last crash involving an F-16 from Cannon was Sept. 10, 2002, about 50 miles west of the base during a routine training mission. The pilot was killed.
Cannon officials said they could not confirm date and circumstances of the last Cannon F-16 crash before Monday.

The Associated Press contributed to this story

I hope this guy (US pilot) was recovered