Two pilots killed in training jet 'mishap' at Air Force Base in Oklahoma
ENID, Okla. – Two pilots were killed in a "mishap" involving training jets at Vance Air Force Base in Oklahoma on Thursday morning.
Two T-38 Talons were performing a routine training mission when an accident occurred at approximately 9:10 a.m. There were two people aboard each aircraft, one crew escaped without injury, but the second jet turned upside down and skidded about 50 yards off the runway, coming to rest with its wheels up and leaving behind a long gash through the grass.
Both airmen inside the second jet were killed.
The names of the two killed will not be released until sometime Friday, pending notification of next of kin.
In a Thursday afternoon news conference, Col. Corey Simmons, the commander of the 71st Flying Training Wing, said his team at Vance is reeling after losing two of their own.
"It breaks my heart to state that two of our Vance family members were killed in this mishap," Simmons said, his voice breaking as he continued. "We are a close-knit family. When tragedies like this occur, every member of the armed forces, Vance, Enid feels it."
Simmons said details of what caused the accident are not known at this time but that an investigation is underway.
"It's all about the family at this point," Simmons said. "They get first right to be able to understand exactly what we know, how we know and the like. We give them the time to process and the rest of investigation follows from there. But our first priority at this moment is the family."
Results of the investigation could take anywhere between 30 to 60 days, Simmons said.
Base emergency response personnel were the first on the scene.
Simmons said flying operations at the base, which sees between 800 to 1,000 landings and around 225 missions flown each day, were suspended Thursday and would most likely remain suspended on Friday to help preserve the integrity of the safety investigation.
The incident comes a little over a year after another T-38 from Vance crashed about 50 miles west of the base. The pilot in that crash, on Aug. 18, 2018, was able to safely eject from the aircraft. Before that, Simmons said the last major mishap at Vance was in 2000.
"Our safety record is exemplary," Simmons said. "Our safety record in the Air Force in general, I would stand by it."
The base is home to the 71st Flying Training Wing, which trains Air Force and allied student pilots. Vance has about 1,200 active duty and reserve service members, in addition to more than 1,100 family members living in the surrounding area.
The T-38 Talon is a "twin-engine, high-altitude, supersonic jet trainer used in a variety of roles because of its design, economy of operations, ease of maintenance, high performance and exceptional safety record," according to an Air Force fact sheet. It is the primary trainer jet for airmen and has trained more than 72,000 U.S. Air Force pilots.
According to manufacturer Northrop Gunman, nearly 1,200 Talons were produced from 1961 to 1972, and more than 500 remain operational with the Air Force and NASA. A replacement wing for the T-38 was designed to help extend the service life until 2020.
Contributing: Adam Kemp
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