Combat aircraft

LOSSES

Compiled by Tom Kaminski

• A US Army HH-60G operated
  by a  ight crew from the New York
  Air National Guard’s 106th Rescue
  Wing/101st Rescue Squadron (RQS)
  crashed near the Syrian border in
  western Iraq on March 16, killing
  seven personnel. The Pave Hawk was
  reportedly assigned to the Alaska Air
  National Guard’s 176th Wing, whose
  personnel had recently been replaced
  by those from New York. In addition to
  the  ight crew, pararescue personnel
  from Air Force Reserve Command’s
  920th Rescue Wing/308th RQS, and
  the USAF’s 38th RQS, who were
  deployed from Patrick AFB, Florida and
  Moody AFB, Georgia, were killed. The
  Pave Hawk was supporting Combined
  Joint Task Force — Operation ‘Inherent
  Resolve’ when it went down near
  the town of Qaim in Anbar Province
  after reportedly striking an electrical
  power line.


• US Navy F/A-18F BuNo 166683,
  assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron
  (VFA) 213, crashed on  nal approach
  to NAS Key West’s Boca Chica Field
  on March 14. The Super Hornet went
  down in shallow water around one

mile (1.6km) east of the runway. The

pilot and weapons systems o cer

were both killed.

• Mi-171 serial 6W-HTA, operated
  by the Senegal Air Force, crashed
  on March 14. Eight of the 20
  personnel aboard the helicopter
  were killed when it went down near
  Missirah in the south-western part of
  the country.


• Cheetak (SA316) serial CG803
  operated by the Indian Coast
  Guard su ered a hard landing near
  Nandgaon in the Raigad district
  of Maharashtra on March 10. The
  helicopter was conducting coastal
  surveillance when it went down
  around 100 miles (160km) south of
  Mumbai. Four crew were rescued and
  transported to the naval hospital at
  INHS Asvini in Mumbai.


• A US Army HH-60G operated by
  the California Air National Guard’s
  129th Rescue Wing su ered a hard
  landing in Idaho on March 8. None
  of the six crew aboard the Pave
  Hawk was injured when it came
  down alongside a highway south of
  Mountain Home, Idaho.


• Russian Aerospace Forces
  An-26 serial RF-92955 (c/n 10107)
  crashed in Syria, killing six crew and
  33 military personnel, on March

6. The Antonov struck the ground
   around 0.3 miles (500m) short of the
   runway at Hmeimin air base in Latakia
   province. The loss was not attributed
   to enemy  re.

• DHC-6-400 serial AN-262 (c/n 957),
  operated by the National Air and
  Naval Service of Panama (SENAN),
  crashed in the Guna Yala region of
  Panama on February 26. The Twin
  Otter reportedly struck trees while on
  approach to Mamitupu Airport. None
  of the 15 crew and passengers was
  seriously injured.


• UH-60M serial FAM-1071 (c/n
  70-4652) operated by the Mexican
  Air Force, crashed in Oaxaca State
  on February 16. The Black Hawk
  was attempting to land in Santiago,
  Jamiltepec when it impacted several
  cars, killing 14 civilians on the ground
  and injuring 15. The Mexican Secretary
  of the Interior, the governor of Oaxaca
  and the commanding general of
  Mexico’s 46th Military Region were
  among the passengers aboard the
  Black Hawk.


• An SF260D operated by the
  Turkish Air Force crashed in Ízmir
  shortly after take-o from Çiğli Main
  Jet Base on February 16. Both pilots

aboard the aircraft were killed when

the aircraft went down around 1.9

miles (3km) north of the base.

• A Pipistrel Virus SW80
  microlight operated by the Indian
  Air Force crashed while trying
  to make an emergency landing
  in Majuli region, Assam, Darbar
  Chapori on February 15. Both pilots
  were killed, and the aircraft was
  destroyed by a post-crash  re. The
  mishap occurred shortly after the
  aircraft took o from Jorhat Air
  Force Station.


• F-16BM serial J-369 (USAF serial
  84-1369) was heavily damaged
  when it struck power lines near
  Black Canyon City around 60 miles
  (97km) north of Phoenix, Arizona
  on February 11. The crew recovered
  the aircraft safely after making an
  emergency landing at Phoenix Sky
  Harbor International Airport. The
   ghter was assigned to the Royal
  Netherlands Air Force contingent
  within the Arizona Air National
  Guard’s 162nd Fighter Wing at
  Tucson International Airport.


• An Afghan National Army Mi-17
  was destroyed in a hard landing
  near Basirkhelo in the Darqad
  district of northern Takhar province
  on February 10. The crew was
  reportedly attempting to make an
  emergency landing.

FIRST FLIGHT FOR SOUTH

KOREAN LIGHTNING II

THE FIRST F35A for the Republic

of Korea Air Force (ROKAF), AW-01,

made its  rst  ight at Naval Air

Station Joint Reserve Base Fort

Worth, Texas, on March 19.

In March 2013 the US Defense

Security Co-operation Agency

(DSCA) noti ed the US Congress

as to the possible sale to South

Korea of 60 F-35As, plus associated

equipment and logistical support.

In March 2014 a spokesperson for

South Korea’s Defense Acquisition

Program Administration (DAPA)

con rmed that the F-35A had been

GERMANY LOOKS TO EF2000 formally selected.

TO REPLACE TORNADO

THE GERMAN DEFENSE Ministry

has announced its preference for

the Euro ghter EF2000 to replace

the Luftwa e’s Tornado  eet, rather

than the F-35A, as some air force

o cials previously hinted.

The ministry con rmed that

while the Luftwa e’s strategy

recommends the parallel use of two

di erent  ghters, this was ‘not a

binding guideline’. Berlin hopes that

sticking with the European design

will retain aerospace expertise

in Europe.

Last December the ministry

said the EF2000 was the leading

candidate to replace the  nal

Tornados beginning in 2025.

However, Luftwa e chief Lt Gen

Karl Müllner announced his

preference for the F-35. Müllner will

now leave his post in May.

Bundeswehr/Bicker

Carl Richards

[NEWS] WORLD

24 May 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net

20-24 World News C.indd 24 21/03/2018 12:42