Category: Pilot

US Navy Identifies Pilot Killed in California Fighter Jet Crash

The U.S. Navy has identified the pilot who was killed in a fighter jet crash during a routine training mission in California last week. Lt. Richard Bullock’s F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter jet went down at about 2:30 p.m. local time on June 3 in a “remote, unpopulated area” near Trona, an unincorporated Mojave Desert community in…


Surgeon: Pilot Had Remarkable Recovery After Passing Out

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.—The 64-year-old pilot of a small plane who became incapacitated, leaving his passenger with no flying experience to land the Cessna in Florida earlier this month, suffered a tear in his aorta, his surgeon said. Dr. Nishant Patel, a cardiothoracic surgeon at Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, said in a news conference…


Pilot Falls Unconscious Mid-Flight, so Passenger Takes Over With ‘No Idea How to Fly,’ Lands Plane Along Florida Coast

A passenger with no flying experience radioed an urgent plea for help when the pilot of a small plane suddenly fell ill off Florida’s Atlantic coast, and was able to land the plane safely with the help of air traffic controllers. “I’ve got a serious situation here,” the man said Tuesday afternoon, May 10, according…


Pilot Crashes, Sees Own Body Hanging in Trees: Near-Death Experience

This near death experience was shared by Canadian pilot Jeffrey S. on the Near Death Experience Research Foundation website and on YouTube. The Crash While operating as the chief pilot for a Canadian air service, I crashed shortly after take off. I had a catastrophic engine failure. Panic was my immediate response, but my training kicked…


Canada Avoided F-35 Teething Problems, Should Buy Stealth Fighter Now: Test Pilot

A former F-35 test pilot says Canada likely benefited from not purchasing the stealth fighter more than a decade ago. Retired lieutenant-colonel Billie Flynn spent more than 17 years flying the F-35 as a test pilot after a 23-year career in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He says Canada has avoided many of the teething…


US Wants Revised Pilot Training After Boeing 737 MAX Crashes

WASHINGTON—The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said Wednesday it is proposing training revisions to help pilots avoid overly reliance on autopilot and to ensure they focus on flightpath management. The FAA said it was issuing draft guidance and recommended practices, and said it was important that even on autopilot flight crews “should always be aware of…


Nearly Home: Teen Pilot Lands in Germany on Global Flight

EGELSBACH, Germany—Teenage pilot Zara Rutherford landed in Germany on Wednesday on the penultimate stop of her bid to become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo. Hopefully one day away from sealing the record, the Belgian-British 19-year-old said that she’s looking forward to getting home after “a long five months.” Rutherford is due…


Pilot of Crashed Medical Helicopter Released From Hospital

PHILADELPHIA—The pilot of a medical helicopter that crash-landed without loss of life next to a church in a residential area of suburban Philadelphia last week expressed gratitude to his crew and first responders as he was released from a hospital Sunday. Danial Moore was wheeled out of the Penn Presbyterian Medical Center emergency room Sunday…


Typhoons, Wildfires, Missiles: Teen Flies Solo Round World

BRUSSELS—Avoid typhoon in the Philippines. Check. Steer clear of massive California wildfires. Check. Keep away from test missiles in North Korea. What? Wait. As teenage pilot Zara Rutherford flew ever onward in a record-challenging global odyssey, she met little as strange or scary as when she tried to squeeze in between North Korean airspace and…


Veteran Pilot Killed Fighting Kruger Rock Fire in Colorado: Officials

A Colorado Army and Air Force veteran pilot fighting the Kruger Rock Fire was killed on Tuesday night when a single-engine air tanker crashed as he used a novel nighttime firefighting method, the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) said. Marc Thor Olson, who flew for Fort Morgan-based CO Fire Aviation, reported turbulent conditions before the crash,…