F-22 Raptor Belly Lands at NAS Fallon

[awal2049]

An F-22A Raptor from the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf AFB in Anchorage, Alaska has reportedly landed on its belly at NAS Fallon near Fallon, Nevada this past Friday. Early speculation indicated that the F-22 may have pulled its landing gear up too quickly on takeoff. The Air Force later confirmed that the cause of the crash was a left engine flameout on takeoff, and new pictures show the thrust-vectoring nozzles in asymmetrical positions. The pilot was able to egress from the aircraft once it had stopped, and no major injuries were sustained.

Naval Air Station Fallon is currently home to the Navy’s Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program, known commonly as TOPGUN. As a requirement for TOPGUN, pilots are tasked with a 1v1 dogfight versus an unknown aircraft type. The F-22 was at Fallon to participate in this exercise.

This incident is similar to one that happened in 2012, in which a Tyndall AFB Raptor skidded down the runway on takeoff. The repairs to that jet cost $35 million and took 6 months to complete. Let’s hope this aircraft can be repaired and returned to service sooner. Read more about the incident here:

http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/20 ... nas-fallon