red750 Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 There I was just flying along, enjoying the flight... And what's so cool is they actually pay me to do this! Hmmm... What's that strange sound? Something feels different! Hey, why am I looking up? Whoa here. What the hell?? Controls aren't working. Time for a mirror check... Hey, where's the rest of my F-15? Uh oh, it's over there... I think I've got a definite 'Aw, sh*t' going on here. I gotta wonder, am I the first guy to ever experience a 'cockpit-airframe separation anxiety attack'?? OK, enough is enough!... I'm outta' here! But first, the canopy has to go... OK, now it's my turn. I'm gonna be gone - soon as I find that frickin' lower handle. I’m gone! This 'incident' caused the USAF to ground its fleet of F-15's. How about the guy who took these pictures? Just when it looks like it's going to be just another 'average day at the office'..! What caused the mid air break up? The main "longeron" (stringer) behind the cockpit failed due to corrosion. Talk about being in the right place at the right time (the photographer)...or the wrong place at the wrong time (the pilot)..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spin Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Caution, teaser alert!! No photos Peter.:( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted March 2, 2012 Author Share Posted March 2, 2012 Sorry Spin and others. After I posted I went back and had a look and it had worked. I will try to add the pics below. Hope it works this time. (ps. I checked for hoax reports - This actually occurred in Nov 2007 when a Missouri National Guard F-15 crashed. The pilot ejected but was injured. The sequence is from an animation used in the crash investigation.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrmobile Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Is it just this computer?............ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siznaudin Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Wikipedia ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-15_Eagle#Structural_defects What intrigues me just as much is the film capture of this incident in so much detail. Maybe they're stills from a video? Dunno. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Studentbiggles Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 WOW........:eek: red750..................That got my attention......amazing piccies...........Alley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red750 Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 As stated in the PS on my last post, Geoff, the images are not actual photos of the incident, they are a series of stills from an animation put together as part of the investigation of the incident. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spin Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 All is forgiven, interesting sequence and siznaudin's link was worth a read too. I've always had a soft spot for the F-15, it is an amazingly versatile design and has proven itself in several wars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willedoo Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 All is forgiven, interesting sequence and siznaudin's link was worth a read too. I've always had a soft spot for the F-15, it is an amazingly versatile design and has proven itself in several wars. I'd agree there, Spin. Always debatable, but I'd probablyy consider it as the most all round capable and successful fighter ( to use a generic term) that the US ever built. Although it's horses for courses, a bit hard to make comparisons at times, but they have made some shockers in their time. A bright future for it though with the Silent Eagle. As a side note, has anyone seen the footage of the Israeli F15 that landed with only the wing root left on one side, somewhere on youtube I think. Cheers, Willie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Darren Masters Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 Bad day at the office :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAA Student Pilot Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 As a side note, has anyone seen the footage of the Israeli F15 that landed with only the wing root left on one side, somewhere on youtube I think.Cheers, Willie. Don't believe everything you see on the net. That footage I think was from a discovery channel "Reinactment", showed the F15 landing with one wing missing with full flap on the other wing!!!!!! No rudder deflection either and at a normal landing attitude with the mid fuse spoiler out. I have seen the incident represented with photo's as well. With one wing (Not just part of) gone there's no way an F15 could land without making a smoking hole in the ground, no matter how much power you have on tap. I believe we should have bought a shipload of F15's instead of a handfull of the JSF's. F15 with fast packs had a range almost as good as an F111. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spin Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 Yeah Willie I had seen the footage and photos; unfortunately reality and myth have become a little intertwined on this one with many people unable to distinguish that the video was a simulation, shown several times on disaster type TV shows. The IDF photos show the wing sheared off a foot or two outboard of the rh engine nacelle, just goes to show how much lift a modern blended wing design can generate from the fuselage and engines. Still an incredible story though. The incident is fairly well documented, including by Flight International which I would consider an authoritative source. I'm a long way from a military expert, but I too tend to favour the Silent Eagle over the JSF, particularly as we are unlikely to ever be able to afford enough of the latter to be an effective force. I'm guessing that offensive strikes over the border are increasingly going to done via UAV, leaving the manned aircraft to fulfill a more defensive role. Interesting times ahead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willedoo Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 It's a long time ago that I saw that video, & thought it seemed a bit of an embellishment at the tme. Possibly one reason we never went for F15's originally was the cost, but the F35 doesn't seem to be any guarantee of a cheap aircraft, so in comparison, I'd guess the F15's would be more viable now. It will be interesting in the future to see how history judges the attempt to have the western world equipped with a one size fits all, light combat fighter (single engine at that). There's been a lot of hype & spin, but the basic thing driving the JSF project is to reduce long term cost. It seems to be about saving money, rather than developing the most effective system. There's probably more than one better option, if you balance all the requirements. Unfortunately, I'll probably be too old to see it all pan out with the future sixth generaion aircraft, but the next 20 years will be very interesting. Cheers, Willie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siznaudin Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 As stated in the PS on my last post, Geoff, the images are not actual photos of the incident, they are a series of stills from an animation put together as part of the investigation of the incident.. Oops - thanks Pete ... I must get my optical prescription renewed, or more clearly get a grip on what "animation" means! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willedoo Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Wikipedia ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-15_Eagle#Structural_defects The way I interpreted that, it seems a handful of them had an incorrectly manufactured longeron which was under spec & this led to a weakening of other bits. So it wasn't an inherent design fault, just an incorrectly manufactured component. Well that's my take on it. Cheers, Willie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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