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Board: July F-15 crash caused by violent spin

LAS VEGAS — A jet crash that killed an Air Force pilot during training exercises over the Nevada desert this summer resulted from a combination of elements that sent the F-15D Eagle into a violent spin lasting nearly one and one-half minutes, the head of an accident review board said Monday.

Imperfections in the jet’s nose cone and an imbalance in two external fuel tanks hindered Lt. Col. Thomas Bouley as he tried to recover from a flat spin, Brig. Gen. Robert Otto said. Otto said the spin started when Bouley made an aggressive turn while attempting a basic flight maneuver at roughly 350 mph.

“He did that because he was going off the feel of the airplane,” Otto said.

Bouley would have normally recovered control of the jet after just a few spins, but the other problems caused the F-15 to spin more severely — roughly 20 times in 87 seconds — before Bouley recovered and ejected, Otto said.

“This was a violent spin,” Otto said. Otto said the plane dropped about 21,000 feet as it spun.

By the time Bouley recovered from the spin and decided to eject, the pilot was too low at 586 feet above the ground for his parachute to work properly. Another pilot from the Royal Air Force successfully ejected from the F-15’s back seat four-tenths of a second earlier at 744 feet.

“The back-seater, he’s a lucky man,” Otto said. “Statistically, he wouldn’t survive that ejection every time.”

The Royal Air Force pilot was taken to a base hospital and was back on duty in one month, Otto said. Bouley was declared dead shortly after the crash.

The accident happened in the vast Nevada Test and Training Range north of Las Vegas, as Bouley and the observer pilot were simulating enemy air forces. Otto said Bouley the jet was not simulating battle action in the moments before the crash.

The findings from the accident investigation board came after months of interviews, more than 70 flight simulations and reviews of cockpit radio transmission transcripts.

The nose cone held a radar antenna that Otto described as crucial for helping the jets remain stabilized. The imperfection in the so-called radome was subtle enough to remain undetectable until Bouley exceeded maneuvering limitations, Otto said.

Bouley was born in Chateauroux, France, graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1988 and served in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas. Officials did not release Bouley’s age, citing Air Force policy.

The two-seater F-15D Eagle is primarily used for tactical missions and costs $38 million.