NEWS & GUESTBOOK

FORT WORTH, Texas (AFPN) -- An Air Force Reserve Command pilot was killed when the single-seat F-16C Fighting Falcon he was flying crashed at about 6 p.m. CDT Aug. 28 near Tulia, Texas.
Maj. Stephen W. Simons, 41, was assigned to the 301st Fighter Wing's 457th Fighter Squadron at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Carswell Field, Texas. Simons was returning to NAS Fort Worth from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, when the accident occurred.
The aircraft was carrying an inert AIM-9M training missile, but no live munitions or bombs.
A disaster control group from Cannon AFB, N.M., some 90 miles west, went to the scene that night to secure the crash site. A formal board of officers is investigating the accident. (Courtesy of AFRC News Service)

NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFPN) -- One Air Force pilot ejected safely from his aircraft and a second returned here safely following a midair collision between two F-16s Aug. 8.
Maj. David Kossler, a pilot with more than 3,300 hours of flying time (more than 1,900 in the F-16) was participating in a four-ship squadron-training mission on Nellis Air Force Range when the accident occurred. He ejected safely from his aircraft approximately 50 miles northeast of the base near Morman Mesa, sustaining only minor injuries. Kossler was recovered by Nellis' 66th Rescue Squadron and flown to the base where he was evaluated at the Mike O'Callaghan Federal Hospital and released.
The second F-16 involved in the accident sustained minor damage and was flown by Maj. Brandon Sweat, a pilot with more than 2,400 hours of flying time (more than 2,300 in the F-16). Both pilots and aircraft involved are assigned to the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron -- part of the 53rd Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. The unit operates from here.
"Anytime we have an accident, we are extremely concerned," said Brig. Gen. David L. Moody, commander of the 57th Wing at Nellis Air Force Base. "We take our safety record very seriously and do everything we can to mitigate the risks involved in flying our high-performance aircraft. I am confident the safety board will determine what occurred in this accident and, if there are procedures we need to change to eliminate that risk, they will be done immediately."
A safety board comprised of Air Force officers convened immediately following the accident to investigate the cause of the incident.

CLTS transfers the responsibility for depot sustainment to the prime contractor and the original equipment manufacturers. The goal is to provide timely, affordable support, while avoiding the problem of diminishing manufacturing sources (DMS). DMS is a major challenge today in electronics systems due to the rapid evolution in electronic components. Contractor tasks include configuration and materiel management, parts repair, and DMS management and resolution.
The contract is a fixed-price agreement with a guaranteed 30-day turnarounds for repairs of subsystems and penalties for poor performance. Contract flexibility accommodates additional customers and equipment.
"This innovative support contract is very attractive for the customer,'' said Donald W. Jones, vice president of F-16 Programmes. "It provides DMS solutions, opportunities for technology insertion, reliability improvements, a guaranteed repair turnaround time and a known cost for each customer.''

LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (AFPN) -- The pilot of an F-16 had insufficient altitude and excessive airspeed, preventing him from completing a maneuver during an aerial demonstration at the Kingsville Naval Air Station, Texas, air show, resulting in a fatal crash March 19.
The pilot, Maj. Brison B. Phillips of the 78th Fighter Squadron at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., was killed in the accident. Accident investigators concluded Phillips focused too much attention on ground references, leading him to begin what is known as the Split-S maneuver from a position in which it could not be safely completed. The crash occurred six minutes into the demonstration.
Strong winds and a complex and unfamiliar ground environment were likely contributing factors, according to the Accident Investigation Board report released today. Strong winds required Phillips to adjust parameters to prevent being shifted away from the show line. Additionally, investigators believe it may have been difficult for him to remain oriented to the show line at the Kingsville airfield with its multiple and crossing runways. These factors contributed to Phillips' intense focus on ground references and his failure to note his altitude before beginning the Split-S, concluded investigating officials.
According to the accident report, Phillips was a highly experienced pilot with more than 1,898 hours in the F-16 and 339.9 hours of combat time. He was highly qualified and an excellent pilot and instructor who demonstrated exceptional maturity and professionalism. He was current and qualified in all areas of the demonstration mission. (Courtesy of ACC News Service)

Mercury Computer Systems has signed an agreement with Northrop Grumman Corporation's Electronic Sensors and Systems Sector (ES3) to supply RACE multiprocessor technology for the F-16 fighter aircraft radar. This includes support for the advanced agile beam fire control radar and the internal forward-looking infrared and targeting system (IFTS). The current business is valued at $6.8 million to Mercury.
Mercury's digital signal and image processing technology and architecture will be used in the F-16's advanced agile beam fire control radar and in the internal forward-looking infrared and targeting system (IFTS). The agile beam radar provides pilots with the ability to continuously search for and track multiple targets. As a result of increased operational flexibility, pilots will have the ability to simultaneously perform air-to-air search-and-track, air-to-ground targeting, and aircraft terrain following.
Agile beam radar has a highly programmable, modular architecture that has proven to be reliable under extreme weather conditions and under a broad range of threats. Other advantages of this radar include a much greater detection range, an ability to detect and track multiple targets simultaneously, high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images, and a twofold increase in reliability compared to conventional, mechanically scanned radars.
"Mercury will provide the benefits of our commercial RACE architecture, and Northrop Grumman will provide the ruggedisation and support required for a deployed, tactical aircraft," said Vince Mancuso, vice president and general manager of Mercury's Government Electronics Group. "The adaptation of our commercial technology to the F-16 has validated Mercury's acceptance as a leading supplier for tactical platform application. We believe the F-16 radar upgrade provides a significant market opportunity for the next five to seven years."

LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. (AFPN) -- F-16 Fighting Falcons assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing resumed normal training operations June 20, ending a brief "stand down" from flying since the June 16 crash of a Luke F-16 near Sells, Ariz.
Col. Steve Sargeant, 56th Fighter Wing commander, ordered the safety stand down shortly after a single-seat F-16C piloted by 1st Lt. Doyle Pompa crashed during an air combat training mission in a military operating area just east of the Barry M. Goldwater Range. Pompa, a student with the 309th Fighter Squadron, safely ejected from his F-16 and was uninjured. The aircraft impacted a remote section of desert on the Tohono O'odham reservation.
In addition to F-16s at Luke, jets from the 56th FW deployed to Cold Lake, Canada -- and fighter wings at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., and Tyndall AFB, Fla. -- temporarily ceased training operations. The stand down allowed investigators time to take a preliminary look at what happened and permit pilots to review emergency procedures.
"When we have a mishap, my inclination is to stand down the wing until we can get a preliminary look to see what may have caused it," said Sargeant. "In our initial review, we haven't found anything which would indicate we have a fleet-wide problem. We have reviewed our critical action procedures and now we will go back to work training F-16 pilots and crew chiefs, while the safety investigation board continues to look for the cause of this crash."
Luke, the Air Force's only active-duty training base for F-16 pilots, has more than 200 F-16's assigned and flies about 160 training missions each day. (Courtesy of Air Education and Training Command News Service)

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah (AFPN) -- A pilot assigned to the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill AFB safely ejected from his F-16 aircraft on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range at Cold Lake Canada Wednesday.
The pilot is assigned to the 421st Fighter Squadron and was in Canada with his unit to participate in Exercise Maple Flag. He sustained only minor injuries.
The U.S. Air Force is working in conjunction with the Canadian Forces to ensure the safety of everyone involved and to secure the crash site.
A flight safety board of investigations is being convened to determine the cause of the crash. (Courtesy of Air Combat Command News Service)

LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. (AFPN) -- A Luke F-16 Fighting Falcon assigned here crashed June 16 during a combat training mission.
The pilot, 1st Lt. Doyle Pompa, ejected from the aircraft safely and was transported by helicopter to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. for medical evaluation and treatment. Pompa, who was not injured, is a student pilot assigned to the 309th Fighter Squadron.
Pompa was conducting an air-to-air combat training mission near the town of Sells, in the military operations area east of the Barry M. Goldwater Range. The crash occurred 14 miles southwest of Sells.
A board of Air Force officers will investigate the incident.

WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- The Department of Defense announced June 9 that ministers of defense from Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and the United States will explore a multinational purchase of precision guided munitions. The objective of this cooperative effort is to decrease costs to participants while significantly increasing their precision strike air-to-ground capabilities. This initiative, led by the Dutch, helps achieve one of the key goals of NATO's Defense Capabilities Initiative, the requirement for allies to conduct air operations while minimizing collateral damage. The group aims to demonstrate that, in accordance with the Defense Capabilities Initiative, the European allies are dedicated to optimizing available resources and to strengthening the European pillar of NATO. The United States strongly supports this initiative on several grounds. Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen has stressed four key points. "First, the United States has long encouraged the North Atlantic alliance to strengthen its European pillar," said Cohen. "Second, the U.S. has urged its allies to pool their efforts as a means to maximize precious defense resources. "Since the Kosovo campaign, the U.S. has pressed its NATO allies to improve their precision strike capabilities in order to better share the responsibilities in the event of a future air operation. "Finally, the U.S. sees this consortium of nations as an excellent opportunity to showcase the recently-announced defense licensing and export control reforms, which are meant to enable closer trans-Atlantic defense cooperation," said Cohen.