Officials release F-15 accident report

  • Published
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (AFPN) --  A loss of fuel to both engines resulted in a dual-engine flameout causing an F-15 Eagle to crash June 18 about 60 miles north of Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., according to an Air Force report released Dec. 29.

The pilot ejected and sustained minor injuries. The aircraft, valued at $31.9 million, was destroyed on impact. It was assigned to the 57th Wing at Nellis.

In the opinion of the accident investigation board president, the loss of fuel was most likely caused by the left and right fire warning light buttons being inadvertently activated, cutting off fuel flow and making it impossible to restart either engine.

Based on his experience with the F-15 aircraft, Gen. Hal M. Hornburg, then commander of Air Combat Command, was not convinced the pushbuttons were the source of the fuel starvation, but he approved the report because it met the requirements of Air Force Instruction 51-503, Aerospace Accident Investigations. (Courtesy of ACC News Service)