OT/MISC Emergency landing at Fresno Airport (an F-16!)

Ok I'm pretty stupid when it comes to planes... So they're still patrollin' the skies to keep us safe?! All 6 missiles were still on board!

http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=6283318

7/24/2008 Fresno, CA (KFSN) -- An F-16 fighter plane has safely touched down at Fresno Yosemite International Airport this morning after experiencing in-flight problems.
The plane made the emergency landing after experiencing some type of engine concerns.
The pilot flew around for close to an hour burning fuel before finally landing. The plane was escorted in by another fighter plane until it made the approach. Fire crews on standby rushed to the aircraft to make sure everything was okay.
When the F-16 landed all six missiles were still on board.

ETA: oh so they say it was a "routine training mission." They train with missiles on board!?

http://www.fresnobee.com/updates/story/751581.html

An F-16C fighter jet on a routine training mission with the California Air National Guard’s 144th Fighter Wing made an emergency landing this morning at Fresno Yosemite International Airport after an indicator light came on in the cockpit.

Capt. Heather Pratt, the wing’s executive officer, said the pilot had taken off from the base at the airport around 8:52 a.m. A short time later, the indicator light came on, and the pilot radioed the base for instructions.

After running through a checklist, it was decided it was safe to bring the pilot back to the base. The pilot circled in the skies for around 18 minutes to burn off fuel so the plane would have a lighter landing weight. He then he landed safely at around 10:17 a.m.

“We always err on the side of caution,” Pratt said. “Our pilots' safety and the safety of the community are our No. 1 concerns.”

Let's face it.

The military DOES patrol the skies of America and this American is damn glad they do!!!

During 911, jet fighter aircraft from Davis-Monthan AFB did combat air patrols over the skies of Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station.
One day, there was an unauthorized launch of an aircraft in the vicinity.
I witnessed a fully loaded F-15 Strike Eagle fly at full afterburner, at tree top level BETWEEN units one and two!!!

Fully loaded and armed F-15's, based at Luke AFB, which is the Air Forces's main training base, fly over my house all the time on their way to the Berry Goldwater Gunnery Range in Gila Bend AZ.

This aircraft probably was on it's way to that live fire training facility.

As touching the landing at a civilian airport, a declared emergency trumps all FAA and military flight rules. There was no fear of the armament. The ordnance has many failsafes.

Bet it woke up the guys in the control tower, though!

DM

Breeta said:

They train with missiles on board!?

Click to expand...

Yeah. Why wouldn't they? That's what fighter planes do - shoot missiles at other planes to destroy them.

And they also could of been dummy bombs or other simulated ordinance that has the weight and aerodynamics of the real thing. Pilots also have to manuever effectively with the real thing so how do they practice it without having it onboard??

Guys, Fresno Airport is where F-16's of the 144th Fighter Wing are based out of. This is just a fighter RTB with engine problems.

FWIW, this is where my Major Bro received his commission. And all the F-16's on the ready flight line are armed.............kind of defeats the idea of air-air warfare if you engage an enemy warplane without weapons. The 144th Fighter Wing's mission is to provide air defense protection for California from the Mexican border to Oregon utilizing the F-16 Fighting Falcon jet fighter aircraft. The 144th also supports the nation's Counter Drug Program and responds to state emergencies when requested by the Governor of California.