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February 21, 2015

US F-16C lands after losing half a wing, other crashes












Dramatic photos after two Air Force fighter jets collided in the skies over Kansas show the complete ruin of one pilot's F-16C Falcon, and the remarkable landing of another while missing nearly half of its wing.The aircraft were performing a mock dogfight on Oct. 20 when the student pilot failed to keep his eyes on his instructor after giving an incorrect radio call, according to an Air Force report released Friday.

Both pilots were assigned to the Air National Guard's 138th Fighter Wing at Tulsa, Okla. The damages cost an estimated $22.5 million but with no significant damage to private property.
According to the report, while the instructor was trailing another F-16 from their unit, who was posing as an attacker, the student mistakenly swooped in, critically shattering the instructor's right horizontal tail.

About 5-feet of the student pilot's right wing was also seared off but he was remarkably able to hold onto its controls and land safely back at the Tulsa Air National Guard Base.The instructor's aircraft was meanwhile seen descending to the ground with white smoke trailing behind.

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