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Roger Whitcomb
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AP)
An Air Force pilot safely ejected shortly before his fighter jet crashed Friday in southern Nevada, about 50 miles northeast of Nellis Air Force Base. The pilot, whose identity was not released, was taken to Mike O'Callaghan Federal Hospital, where he was being evaluated, Air Force officials said.
The pilot was described as having logged more than 1,800 hours flying F-15s, including more than 300 hours in combat. The F-15C aircraft, estimated at $29.5 million,was assigned to the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron at Nellis. An interim safety board of officers will investigate the crash, which occurred about 8:35 a.m. on federal land. It was the second crash this month at the base, which is about 12 miles northeast of downtown Las Vegas. An Air Force pilot safely ejected moments before his F-16 crashed March 18 just short of a base runway.
Master Sgt. Charles Ramey said the crashes were just two of the 32,000 sorties at the base each year. "It is the second crash within a week, but we have a tremendous safety record out here at Nellis with the amount of sorties we fly each year," Ramey said.
Other recent crashes at Nellis include an F/A-22 Raptor that crashed Dec. 20 and a Navy F-18 that went down Nov. 9. Both pilots safely ejected. Friday's crash was not part of Joint Red Flag combat exercises, which Nellis is hosting. More than 10,000 U.S. service members from all four branches are participating in the training that began Monday and continues through April 2.
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