Air Force News, news from Iraq - Air Force Times

Report: Pilot error blamed in fatal Talon crash

WICHITA FALLS, Texas — Pilot error is to blame in a military jet crash that killed an instructor and student pilot at Sheppard Air Force Base three months ago, according to a report released Wednesday.

Maj. Brad T. Funk, a 90th Flying Training Squadron instructor pilot, and 2nd Lt. Alec F. Littler, a student pilot assigned to the 80th Operations Support Squadron, were on a training mission May 1, according to the report released by Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio.

They were simulating a single-engine landing approach and were trying to touch down on the Sheppard runway and then take off again, but the T-38C Talon landed short of the runway, causing debris to enter the right engine. Funk took control of the plane, and as it was climbing, he retracted the landing gear and flaps, causing the plane to have insufficient power and airspeed, the report said.

It stalled about 25 to 40 feet above the ground and they ejected almost simultaneously, causing contact between the two seats and disrupting the ejection’s direction and sequence, the report said. Both were killed on impact with the ground at the base in Wichita Falls.

Funk did not execute critical emergency procedures after the right engine failed, according to the accident investigation board.

“Specifically, the decision to retract the flaps rather than leaving them extended resulted in insufficient lift to sustain flight,” the report read.