Tag Archives: fallon

Second F/A-18C Crashes in Nevada in as Many Weeks

Another F/A-18C, this one flown by the Navy (though on loan from the Marines), has crashed. The pilot ejected safely:

An F/A-18C Hornet assigned to Strike Fighter Wing Pacific, Detachment Fallon, crashed into an open field near Naval Air Station Fallon, Nevada, at approximately 10:50 a.m. PDT. The Navy pilot, who is assigned to Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center, ejected safely from the aircraft…

This follows the crash last week of a Marine F/A-18 that Read more

Report: F/A-18s Collided After Wrong Turn

According to the Military Times, the midair collision of two F/A-18s from Naval Air Station Fallon last year was the result of a very simple pilot error:

Shortly after takeoff, they moved into a “wall formation” with the Super Hornets four abreast, putting 1.2 nautical miles between the two planes that eventually would collide. The lieutenant commander was flying one of the two inside planes.

“90-right, go,” the lieutenant commander announced, signaling everyone to turn.

While the three other planes turned right, for some reason the lieutenant commander turned left. Read more

Civilian Ejects from Fighter Aircraft

The US Navy has reported that a pilot successfully ejected from an A-4 Skyhawk at Fallon Naval Air Station.  The A-4 was owned by Airborne Tactical Advantage Co and flown by a civilian contract pilot.  The company was apparently on contract to provide Red Air for Naval aviator training at Fallon.

While civilian organizations flying military fighter aircraft are relatively rare (and they are often owned and/or composed almost entirely of former military members), there are a surprising number of civilian “fighter pilots” flying fighter aircraft either in or in support of the US military.