4 ms·

"According to the Air Force, 26% of aircraft losses and 75% of all F-16 fatalities are caused by such accidents." Wow.

• marvin 12y ago
  Keep in mind that jet fighter crashes are often survived by the pilot if he or she has the time to react and bail out. Many crashes are caused by technical malfunction or loss of control at altitudes where the pilot has plenty of time to react. However, if the pilot is still on board, ground collision at flight speed is almost universally fatal. Fighter pilots during ground attack or low-level dogfighting are always pushing the envelope both in aerodynamic/structural capability and maneuvering wrt. terrain hazards, so ground collision is a very serious safety hazard. Military pilots have much, much smaller margins of error than commercial or recreational pilots.
  • afterburner 12y ago
    Yes, the wow was more about the 26%.
  • konstruktor 12y ago
    The article specifically talks about controlled flight into terrain, which, by definition excludes malfunctions.
    • theoh 12y ago
      I think the point being made about malfunctions is that they are less likely to lead to fatalities than CFIT. This would explain the high percentage of fatalities caused by CFIT.