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| Cause of San Diego F/A-18 crash |
| 2009-03-04 |
| San Diego -- The F/A-18 crash that killed four family members in a San Diego neighborhood on Dec. 8 was caused by poor maintenance on the plane and a series of errors by the pilot and officers trying to guide him to an emergency landing, the results of a Marine investigation released today concluded. Four officers at Miramar Marine Corps Air Station have been relieved of duty, a probable career-ending sanction. Nine other Marines and sailors have also been punished. The pilot, who was still in training, has been grounded. The assistant commandant for aviation will decide whether he is allowed to resume flying. "While we did not find any evidence of criminal wrongdoing, the responsible parties are being held accountable for their part in this tragic accident," Maj. Gen. Randolph Alles, an F/A-18 pilot and assistant commander of the Miramar-based 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, told reporters at an afternoon news conference. Hours earlier, Marine brass briefed politicians in Washington and San Diego, as well as Dong Yun Yoon, whose wife, two young daughters and mother-in-law were killed when the plane smashed into their home. Owners of two adjacent homes were also briefed. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #7 Just after the incident: Yoon said he did not blame the pilot and urged the public to pray for him. “I don’t blame him. I don’t have any hard feelings. I know he did everything he could,” Yoon said at the time. “Please pray for him not to suffer from this accident,” Yoon said as he fought for composure. “He is one of our treasures for the country.” He's a better man than I am. I would not have been as diplomatic if my entire family had just been wiped out. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2009-03-04 23:53 |
| #6 ShipLord makes temse emergency landing, runs off locals, nothing to see here. Also: LOL |
| Posted by: Shipman 2009-03-04 20:09 |
| #5 sadly, the usual suspects and people who bought homes under an existing military base flight pattern have used this to try and limit or shut down Miramar - won't happen. And if it did, the same f*cking assholes and fools would get a relocated Lindbergh Field civ airport there. Careful what you |
| Posted by: Frank G 2009-03-04 08:54 |
| #4 Hat tip AC. That was pretty slick! |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-03-04 08:16 |
| #3 Call BR-549... |
| Posted by: Spot 2009-03-04 08:13 |
| #2 Damn right, Pan. I once landed a UH-1H Huey in a supermarket parking lot near Mount Holly NC. The indication was transmission failure, accompanied by various alarming smells and grinding noises. The Charlotte airport was just a few minutes away but there was no reason to risk flight over populated areas with a marginal aircraft. The outcome was much, much happier, even farcical, on that occasion: A local who looked just like the late Junior Samples of Hee-Haw fame drove up in his pickup and asked what we were doing landing a "heel-copter" at the "gosh-ree sto'" I responded that we were having a picnic and had dropped by for some extra chips and beer. He let out a squawk and fled, at which point another crowd and a local policeman arrived to gawk and take charge of the scene, repectively. I remember Mr. Dong Yun Yoon from the early coverage, the very picture of dignity in the face of unimaginable grief and loss. This accident was a cluster-f**k of monumental dimensions and I am glad to see heads bouncing right out of the service over it. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2009-03-04 02:03 |
| #1 "Land as soon as possible" does not mean at the closest maintenance facility. This sounded avoidable. |
| Posted by: 49 Pan 2009-03-04 01:34 |