Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*PICS*

Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Muff3n said:
I sure am glad the guy turned out alright. Thank god for ejection seats. I am really happy the pilot decided to eject instead of having the 1 or 2 second period of second guessing, that second could have made the difference of him living and dying, especially at that altitude.
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Im obviously no fighter pilot, but I know the guys who fly Demo for the Canadian Forces are literally the best in the Air Force, or so I've been told... by demo pilots now that I think of it.... but anyway, he did try to fly the airplane until almost 90 degrees, he didn't quit until the last possible second.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Hacker15e said:
Biggest thing I see in the pics is that the left nozzle is all the way open and the right nozzle is all the way closed, suggesting some kind of engine problem at a minimum.
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Would the nozzles do that during a compressor stall?
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

canadian_atc said:
Im obviously no fighter pilot, but I know the guys who fly Demo for the Canadian Forces are literally the best in the Air Force, or so I've been told... by demo pilots now that I think of it.... but anyway, he did try to fly the airplane until almost 90 degrees, he didn't quit until the last possible second.
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I am in no way doubting the Canadian's ability. I am sure this guy is one of the best pilots in their entire Air Force. I believe the pilot handled the situation very well.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

What's the little white parachute (Picture 2) carrying?
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Holy cow, that IS ironic! ;) happy ending for the pilot, not so happy ending for the aircraft!
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Would it even be possible to VMC roll a F-18 since the engines are so close together? I'm pretty sure USN pilots who convert their military training to FAA certificates could only get a "centerline thrust" limitation if they were a Hornet driver.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

esa17 said:
Would it even be possible to VMC roll a F-18 since the engines are so close together? I'm pretty sure USN pilots who convert their military training to FAA certificates could only get a "centerline thrust" limitation if they were a Hornet driver.
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Yes...it is very much possible to have an asymmetric thrust departure from controlled flight even with the engines that close together.

It's the same story with the F-15. Somehow the airplane doesn't recognize that the FAA only considers it a 'centerline thrust' jet -- it still makes me use a boot-full of rudder and sometimes reduced thrust when one is dead.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Hacker15e said:
Yes...it is very much possible to have an asymmetric thrust departure from controlled flight even with the engines that close together.

It's the same story with the F-15. Somehow the airplane doesn't recognize that the FAA only considers it a 'centerline thrust' jet -- it still makes me use a boot-full of rudder and sometimes reduced thrust when one is dead.
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Thanks!
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

XcalibeR said:
One question for you military folks out there...I noticed in this picture that the pilot's chin is down on his chest. I remember being told once that ejection seats had hookups that attached the pilot's head, arms, and legs that automatically yanked them back to the seat when the handle was pulled.
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It depends on the seat.

The most widely used US seat, the ACES II, has no leg, arm, or head restraints.

I don't personally know of any that have head or arm restraints, but quite a few do have leg restraints.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Just another bit this second time looking at the pix -- the left engine is in burner (with the nozzle open). Note the big plume of flame that comes out that nozzle in the first impact photo, probably the result of the raw fuel being sprayed into the augmenter section when the engine is in AB.

It would be interesting to see a shot from a different angle to see if you can see the burner cooking prior to the crash.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Hacker15e said:
Yes...it is very much possible to have an asymmetric thrust departure from controlled flight even with the engines that close together.

It's the same story with the F-15. Somehow the airplane doesn't recognize that the FAA only considers it a 'centerline thrust' jet -- it still makes me use a boot-full of rudder and sometimes reduced thrust when one is dead.
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+1. Specifically for the Legacy Hornet (not sure if the CF-18 is the same, but I'd guess so), at low airspeed if you lose an engine and shove the other one to MAX (ie full blower) the NATOPS manual says that you can depart the jet and not have the control authority to recover. No idea if this came into play here, just sayin....
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Jfk-Pilot said:
kudos to the pilot for making such a quick decision to eject.
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I'd imagine it wasn't a hard decision to make once the plane wasn't controllable and clear of the crowd.

If I am not mistaken the ACES II is a zero / zero seat and self righting.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

If the CF-18 shares seats with the US models, then it is a NACES (SJU-17) seat. Our seats have leg garters (ankle and thigh) that yank your legs and feet into the proper position once the ejection sequence is initiated. Beyond that, it is up to the pilot to position his/her arms, head, and back in the correct position. And yes, it is advertised as a 0/0 seat, though of course there are still limits to what it can do.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

///AMG said:
+1. Specifically for the Legacy Hornet (not sure if the CF-18 is the same, but I'd guess so), at low airspeed if you lose an engine and shove the other one to MAX (ie full blower) the NATOPS manual says that you can depart the jet and not have the control authority to recover. No idea if this came into play here, just sayin....
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I would certainly guess that the reduced arm of the thrust you would see compared to most twins with engines mounted on the wings is more than made up for by the massive amount of thrust being generated in general of each engine.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

poser765 said:
I would certainly guess that the reduced arm of the thrust you would see compared to most twins with engines mounted on the wings is more than made up for by the massive amount of thrust being generated in general of each engine.
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Yeah, that's 16,000 lbs of assymetric thrust (or 18,000 #'s on the EPE -402 motors) in full blower
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

If you watch video of the crash, at the moment right after ejection, the controls still show full left rudder, neutral aileron, and a significant amount of up elevator...

Assume what you may.. I don't think the airplane was doing what the pilot had in mind there :)

Glad he's ok!
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Those are amazing pictures, I just can't imagine ejecting from a jet like this, just Wow! Glad the pilot is safe.
 
Re: Canadian Forces CF-18 Crashes during airshow practice.*P

Bandit_Driver said:
I'd imagine it wasn't a hard decision to make once the plane wasn't controllable and clear of the crowd.

If I am not mistaken the ACES II is a zero / zero seat and self righting.
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The seat is only zero/zero on the ground. In the air, any combination of downward vector or roll are all factors that degrade the seat's ability to save you, and thus require more altitude to overcome.

As I explained before in a thread, the reason military pilots attempt a zoom climb following a full power loss on takeoff is not necessarily to circle around to land, but to help the ejection seat save the pilot by setting it up for success through giving it a positive, wings-level climb vector prior to initiating.
 
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