Prayers for the pilot. Too bad about the plane...it was a nice one.
Posted on 12/13/2018 5:10:44 AM PST by BenLurkin
A civilian contractor pilot hired by the Hawaii Air National Guard was in serious condition Wednesday after crashing his plane during a military exercise off the coast of Honolulu, authorities said.
A private sailboat rescued the unidentified 47-year-old pilot about 3 miles south of Oahu near Honolulu's Sand Island where he was then transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Hawker Hunter jet went down in the ocean around 2:25 p.m. after taking off from Honolulu's airport, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The Hawker Hunter is a British jet developed in the late 1940s and early 1950s, according to the website of defense contractor BAE Systems.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Sounds more like a display than an exercise....
Apparently he was flying as “aggressor” force
—...after crashing his plane—
Prayers for the pilot. Too bad about the plane...it was a nice one.
I guess the “Accidents and incidents” section at Wiki will have to be updated...
A few years ago, there were two of these on the ramp at the Manchester, NH airport. One of them was taken up for a test flight by an civilian who was also a Major in the ANG of another state.
He had insuffient fuel and didn’t make it to the airport. Totaled the plane and himself. A very sad event.
ATAC does this all the time...it's their business. Thank God almighty he was in home waters, not out over the South Pacific somewhere.
Not enough praise can be heaped on the Hawaiian Parasail personnel who arrived on scene first and helped him untangle, and the USCG for bringing him in.
Here's a good video package of the story:
Pilot rescued after small military training plane crashes off Oahu.
It sounds like the parasail folks were witnesses rather than rescuers.
"...Jamey Regelbrugge was captaining a boat for Hawaiian Parasail south of Oahu when he saw the jet fly over the parachute he was pulling behind his boat. He saw the pilot eject and the plane crash into the water. Almost in an instant, the Coast Guard came and pulled the pilot out of the water..."
Well done to the USCG who happened to be ‘Johnny on the Spot”
They were both. One of the parasail boat crewmen, who has experience in untangling chute lines in the water, of course, leaped into the water and helped him get free of his chute, and hung with him until the Coasties could get to him.
Dude's top notch.
Thanks.. sounds like poor reporting from the article referenced...
Nothing like accuracy in journalism.../S
Nothing like accuracy in journalism.../S
Adam Carolla is fond of saying something to this effect: "you never quite understand how wrong the media gets it until they do a story about you." I found that out last night (not that the story is about me, but someone close to me), scrambling around for news and squaring it with what I heard from other sources.It's understandable, though. This was a quick-breaking story, and for most readers/viewers, it's a "huh" and then a walk-away.
As you might have inferred, this story is very much alive and personal for me. Twas a tough night in Oahu for my loved ones.
A very long time ago, some friends of mine were at an air show. They were sitting in the stands at the start of the show when their baby began screaming, uncontrollably. They tried everything to sooth the baby, nursing, changing, holding, you name it, baby still screaming. Finally, they decided to take the baby home and left. As soon as they got in the car, baby stops screaming. Not 15 minutes after they left, one of the planes crashed into the stands exactly where they’d been sitting, killing and injuring a lot of people.
Several companies out there;
Civil
A number of civil organizations operate or have operated Hunters for use as aerial targets and for threat simulation under contract with the military. Other Hunters are owned and operated for public display and demonstration:
Airborne Tactical Advantage Company (ATAC)
The American company ATAC, based at Williamsburg International Airport in Newport News, Virginia, operates 14 former Swiss F.58s on United States government contracts.
Apache Aviation
Contracted by the French Navy, Apache is based at Istres in Provence, France, with frequent deployments to Lorient and Landivisiau in Brittany, other locations as required. Operates two single-sweater and one two-seat Hunters. Operations are associated with Lortie Aviation.
Delta Jets
Operated between 1995 and 2010 from Kemble Airport near Cirencester, England with three operational Hunters. The company went into liquidation in 2010, Hunter G-FFOX (WV318) is now operated by the Hunter Flight academy.
Dutch Hawker Hunter Foundation
Operates a Hunter T.8C two-seater in RNLAF markings and a single-seat Hunter F.6A in Dutch markings, based at Leeuwarden Air Base in the Netherlands.
Embraer Operates an ex-Chilean Air Force Hunter T.72 as a flight test chase plane.
Hawker Hunter Aviation
Based at RAF Scampton, it operates a fleet of 12 Mk 58 and three two-seaters (T.7 and T.8), as well as other aircraft to provide high speed aerial threat simulation, mission support training and trials support services.
Hunter Flight Academy.
Operates a Hunter T.7a G-FFOX (WV318) callsign “FireFox” – a two-seat Hunter in 111sqn “Black Arrows” colours and markings. The Hunter T.7a is based at North Weald Airfield in the UK.
Hunter Flying Ltd. (now Horizon Aircraft Services Ltd.)
Based at MOD St Athan in Wales, Hunter Flying Ltd maintains over 15 privately owned examples of the Hunter.
Lortie Aviation
A Canadian company (formerly known as Northern Lights Combat Air Support) is based in Quebec City and owns 21 Hunters (mainly ex-Swiss F.58 variants) that are leased out for military training duties.
Thunder City
Three flyable Hunters are based at Thunder City at Cape Town International Airport in South Africa. Four (of the seven) Hunters owned by Thunder City were up for auction in April 2013.
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