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Mechanical failure, error caused Talon crashes

The reasons a pair of T-38C Talons crashed less than two weeks apart, killing both sets of instructor pilots and students, were released Wednesday by Air Education and Training Command.

A mechanical problem with a T-38C’s right wing led to the fatal April 23 crash at Columbus Air Force Base, Miss., an Air Force accident investigation board concluded.

Instructor Maj. David B. Faulkner, a reservist with the 43rd Flying Training Squadron, and student pilot 2nd Lt. Matthew Emmons of the 50th Flying Training Squadron were both killed in the crash. The officers tried to eject, but the plane was nearly upside down and too low for either to bail out safely.

The investigation found that the jet’s right aileron failed just before takeoff, leaving the flap in the “full down” position and causing the T-38C to roll to the left as it left the runway. The pilots managed to get the plane level momentarily, but the aileron continued to twist the plane to the left and the pilots could not overcome the roll.

Prior to takeoff, no maintenance problems had been found with the aileron, the report said. However, post-crash inspections found that a lever controlling the aileron had broken from fatigue.

Less than two weeks after the Columbus crash, a T-38C at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, crashed May 1. Both instructor pilot Maj. Brad T. Funk, 90th Flying Training Squadron, and student 2nd Lt. Alec F. Littler, 80th Operations Support Squadron, were killed.

The accident investigation board concluded that Funk erred during emergency procedures after the jet touched down short of the Sheppard’s runway while practicing single-engine touch-and-go landings. The board found that Funk’s decision to retract the wing flaps, after deciding to take back off, left the jet without enough lift to stay in the air.

After the jet began to fall, Funk and Littler ejected, but their seats collided and both officers died on impact with the ground.