1994 — March 23, USAF C-130/F-16 Collide, F-16 hits troops on ramp, Pope AFB, NC–24
— 24 Condon-Rall. Disaster on Green Ramp: The Army’s Response. U.S. Army. 1996, Preface.
— 24 Wikipedia. “Green Ramp disaster.” 2-1-2012 modification.
— 23 Aircraft Crashes Record Office (Geneva, Switzerland). North Carolina. Reg. 66-0173.
— 23 B3A. “Crash of a Lockheed C-141 Starlifter in Fayetteville-Pope: 23 killed.” 3-23-1994.
— 23 Baugher, Joseph F. 1966 USAF Serial Numbers. 1-16-2012 revision.
— 23 Gero. Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908. 1999, p. 163.
— 23 Hansen, Lt. Col. (USAFR Ret.) Paul M. C-141 Lifetime Mishap Summary. Oct 1, 2004.
— 23 Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, Japan. “Report: Tower caused crash.” 7-2-1994, p. 3.
— 23 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “F-16 flight path changed last year.” 3-27-1994, 1.
— 23 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Study warned against use of Pope AFB for…” 3-28-1994, 2
— 23 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Operations begin for crash victims.” 3-29-1994, p. 2A.
— 23 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “More crash victims arrive in Texas.” 4-1-1994, p. 2A.
— 23 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Report blames controller in crash.” 6-22-1994, p. 2A.
— 22 Aiken Standard, SC. “Clinton Visits Soldiers.” 3-26-1994, p. 1.
— 20 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Investigators probing fatal crash.” 3-25-1994, 1.
— 15 Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “15 dead in Pope crash.” 3-24-1994, p. 1.
Narrative Information
ASN: “Narrative: Starlifter 66-0173 was parked on the ramp at Pope AFB. Army paratroops were boarding the plane for an exercise airdrop mission. At that moment a USAF F-16D (88-0171) entered the traffic pattern on finals for runway 23. The F-16 collided with a USAF Lockheed C-130E Hercules (68-10942) at an altitude of 300 feet. The C-130 continued and landed safely. Both F-16 pilots ejected, but the airplane crashed onto the taxiway. It skidded into the loading C-141, puncturing the fuel tanks in the right wing, causing a massive fire. Of approximately 500 troops in the vicinity of the accident, 23 were killed and over 80 were injured.” (Aviation Safety Network. Accident Description. United States Air Force, Lockheed C-141B Starlifter, Fayetteville- Pope AFB, NC, 23 Mar 1994.)[1]
Baugher: “Lockheed C-141A-LM Starlifter….0173 (c/n 300-6199) struck on ramp Mar 23, 1994 at Pope AFB by out-of-control F-16D 88-0171 and burned. Of approximately 500 troops in the vicinity, 23 were killed and over 80 were injured.” (Baugher, Joseph F. 1966 USAF Serial Numbers. 1-16-2012 revision.)
Condon-Rall: “This is the story of the Army’s response to the disaster on Green Ramp at Pope Air Force Base on 23 March 1994. Professionalism, training, and teamwork turned an essentially tragic story into a triumphant one: Twenty-four paratroopers perished, but more than a hundred were saved. A quick-reaction mission and numerous deployments made it possible for Fort Bragg’s elite XVIII Airborne Corps and its 82d Airborne Division and 44th Medical Brigade, as well as Womack Army Medical Center, to respond rapidly and effectively to the crisis. Training and teamwork also worked for Fort Sam Houston, Brooke Army Medical Center, and the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research, where the severely burned received care….
“The idea for this study originated with Army Chief of Staff General Gordon R. Sullivan, who, after visiting the injured paratroopers at Fort Bragg several days after the incident, tasked the Center of Military History to capture the story of the Army’s response. In April and May 1994 an Army history team, consisting of historians from the 44th Military History Detachment, the Office of the Surgeon General, and the Center of Military History, interviewed participants in the response at Fort Bragg and Fort Sam Houston. One year later Brig. Gen. John W. Mountcastle, the Center’s chief of military history, gave the writing project a top priority, and work commenced on it in May 1995….” (Condon-Rall 1996, Preface.)
“The twenty-third of March 1994 was a fitting day for an airborne jump. The skies were clear, with good visibility; the temperature was in the mid-sixties; and the winds were moderate, 4 to 6 knots. The XVIII Airborne Corps, stationed at Fort Bragg near Fayetteville, North Carolina, had scheduled two parachute missions, one in the late afternoon and another in the evening, using aircraft on the adjacent Pope Air Force Base… Required to undergo pre-jump exercises within twenty-four hours of taking off, Army paratroopers had assembled at Pope Air Force Base for training in the early afternoon. Units on the day’s manifest were the 82d Airborne Division’s 504th Infantry, 505th Infantry, and 782d Support Battalion (Main), as well as the XVIII Airborne Corps’ 525th Military Intelligence Brigade and 1 59th Aviation Group (Combat) (Airborne).
“The paratroopers had gathered on the staging area known as Green Ramp, located west of the southern end of Pope’s main runway. Green Ramp contained the jumpmaster school buildings; the jumpers assembly building, referred to as the “pax shed”; a series of CONEX containers; two Air Force buildings; trailers; a snack bar; and the jumpmaster school training….
“Around 1410 an F-16D Fighting Falcon collided with a C-130 Hercules transport while both tried to land at Pope Air Force Base. The Hercules touched down safely. The F-16 pilots ejected as the fighter plummeted to the ground, ricocheting across the tarmac and sliding into one of the parked C-141 Starlifters. Both planes exploded in flames, hurling searing-hot metal through the air and spewing 55,000 gallons of fuel onto Green Ramp. The debris-filled fireball, “described by some as 75 feet in diameter,” roared through the staging area where the paratroopers were preparing for airborne operations, stopping in the vicinity of the Airborne Gate on Rifle Range Road, which separated Fort Bragg from Pope Air Force Base….
“All casualties who were still alive had been evacuated to Womack’s main hospital within forty-five minutes of the accident….
Firefighters
“Contingency planning had made it possible for firefighters to respond effectively to the accident. When the alarm sounded, Pope Air Force Base firefighters were at the crash within two minutes and were battling fires within three. Fort Bragg and Cumberland County firefighters arrived at Pope’s fire station within six to fifteen minutes. A new mutual aid program, devised by the military and civilian fire chiefs, helped the fire departments to respond quickly and competently. After the Pope dispatcher called the county dispatcher, requesting units from five specific fire departments and their equipment, the latter, “with the flick of a few switches, . . . sent out the five calls. It really cut down on the time the dispatcher needs to spend on the phone with us, which makes the whole process go faster,” recalled Capt. Chris Dowless of the Cumberland County Emergency Operations Center. The Fort Bragg garrison also had the same type of plan with the county fire departments.
“Since military and civilian firefighters used similar appliances, the firemen could hook up to each other’s systems and work together. Fort Bragg’s Ladder 10 linked hoses with a fire truck from Spring Lake Fire Department; together they poured foam and water on the C-141 to keep its fuselage from igniting. Within twenty minutes the aircraft was under control. To prevent the second C-141 from catching on fire, maintenance crews rapidly towed the Starlifter about 300 yards away. Other fire engines put out spot fires on trees, the ground, rucksacks, equipment, debris, buildings, a food vendor truck, and even casualties. The combined efforts of five fire trucks succeeded in extinguishing the flames within fifty minutes of the crash.
“When the fires were out, the firefighters searched for the F-16’s tank of hydrazine, a chemical used for emergency engine restarting “because even a whiff of it [was] fatal.” A small amount of hydrazine had leaked from the fighter’s emergency power unit, which later was found near the center of the disaster site.
Rescue Teams
“Contingency planning also helped medical rescue teams respond with alacrity. Within minutes of notification, medical rescue teams from Pope Air Force Base and from Fort Bragg reached the accident scene. Four ambulances from the 23d Medical Squadron, which supported the 23d Wing on Pope Air Force Base, answered the call from various locations. Three of the ambulances and crews were on the road and had witnessed the collision. One of those ambulances rescued the two F-16 pilots and took them to the Pope Air Force Base clinic. The 23d Medical Squadron’s unit control center, activated because of the crash, sent a fifth ambulance, medicines, and supplies to Green Ramp. The 44th Medical Brigade, fortuitously training nearby, also arrived with ambulances within minutes. In response to a 911 alert, Womack Army Medical Center activated its disaster plan and sent ambulances to Green Ramp.
“Two UH-60 medevac helicopters had landed near Green Ramp as well. The aircraft belonged to the 57th Medical Company (Air Ambulance) of the 56th Medical Battalion (Evacuation), which was part of the 55th Medical Group of the 44th Medical Brigade. The “1st up” aircraft arrived at Pope Air Force Base at 1438, eight minutes after notification, and departed for Womack with two litter cases at 1448….
“Limited triage occurred at the crash site because of the fires and exploding ammunition (500 rounds of 20-mm. ammunition from the fighter), the numerous medical personnel and vehicles available for evacuation, and the quick transport of casualties to Womack nearby. Six burn patients were taken to the Pope Air Force Base clinic and later transported to Womack. The nine pronounced dead at the scene were placed in a temporary morgue in a small building near the crash site and then moved to the morgue at Womack….
“One month before the accident the 2d Battalion, 504th Infantry, had to simulate evacuating dead and wounded during maneuvers at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Lessons learned during those exercises helped the battalion to evacuate soldiers and account for fallen comrades on Green Ramp. “Most of the things . . . [at the crash site] were exactly what we had trained there,” said Lt. Col. Stanley A. McChrystal, the battalion commander who had served with a special operations unit during the Gulf War. “We had to figure out who we had, and that’s much harder than you think because of the confusion at the site.”….” (Condon-Rall 1996, Chapter 1: The Heroes of Green Ramp.)
Initial Medical Response
“In response to the 911 alert of the accident at Pope Air Force Base Maj. C. Craig Corey, MC, the emergency medicine department chief at Womack, activated Code Yellow, the mass casualty (MASCAL) plan. Assuming the worst scenario, he called additional emergency room physicians, nurses, and medical technicians into the hospital. At the same time, a member of his staff alerted the hospital chaplains and the anesthesia, surgery, respiratory, radiology, and nursing departments. Each department activated its own MASCAL plan. Corey’s staff then cleared the emergency room of patients not warranting immediate attention, made someone responsible for logging in the MASCAL patients, brought stretchers into the emergency room, and retrieved MASCAL carts from storage in the decontamination shower room. Corey was known as an excellent emergency room physician, capable of performing at high levels under stress. By 1425 the magnitude of the accident was apparent as the first group of casualties arrived in a potpourri of tactical and personal vehicles.
“The first victims to enter the emergency room were two food vendors with minor burns. Corey steered them to the outpatient clinic. The next patient arrived on a plywood stretcher. He had a leg amputated and a tourniquet held in place by a crowbar. He was conscious and alert, and Corey directed him to the trauma area. Another soldier suffered burns on 100 percent of his body. Emergency room staff cared for him, while hospital administrators arranged for the victim’s transfer to a regional burn facility.
“Outside the emergency room, vehicles with casualties on board arrived in great numbers. A 2.5-ton truck held as many as ten victims, thrown into the back in a “scoop and run method,” one patient on top of another. A 5-ton truck and Humvees had injured soldiers “on backboards across the radio hump.” Burns covered 80 to 90 percent of their bodies. Some had head injuries, bone fractures, and shrapnel wounds…..
“By 2200 Womack Army Medical Center had provided initial management to all of the accident victims. The 9 killed at the site and the 2 who died en route to the hospital were taken to the morgue. The hospital treated and released 51 casualties, their follow-up care to be on an outpatient basis, and admitted 55…to intensive care units and 30 to inpatient wards. Another 13 casualties were transferred to regional hospitals — 7 to the Jaycee Burn Center, 5 to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, and 1 to Highsmith-Rainey Memorial Hospital. The Green Ramp disaster had produced 130 casualties.
“Hospital personnel realized that even their best efforts could not save some patients. At Womack one died about thirty minutes after the accident. Another death occurred at the hospital about twelve hours later. By 26 March the Green Ramp disaster had claimed 10 more lives, 5 at Womack and 5 at Jaycee, for a total of 23 dead. This total would increase to 24 ten months later, when the last victim passed away….” (Condon-Rall 1996, Chapter 2: Initial Medical Response.)
Command and Control
“In addition to notification, the casualty assistance officers discussed survivor needs and benefits with the victims’ families. They arranged for medical evaluation boards to provide early retirement for the soldiers who were near death in order to increase their dependents’ benefits; the widow would receive the retirement and the child the death indemnity compensation, about $750 a month. The division EOC had to ascertain who was married, who had children, who was critically injured, and who should be processed first among the casualties. Because of this effort, only one soldier with children died before the division was able to retire him early. “Retiring people was a focused effort, day and night,” recalled Colonel Stansfield, who coordinated the work with the XVIII Airborne Corps casualty assistance personnel. General Steele recalled that “Corps, Department of the Army, all of them just opened the door and said: ‘Call. We have the board ready; we can do this procedure in a matter of minutes.’ Things that would take a year when it’s not a crisis were happening in a matter of minutes over the phone.” Later, the corps recommended clarification of Army policy to allow posthumous medical retirement for all casualties…..” (Condon-Rall 1996, Chapter 3: Military and Civilian Response.)
Memorial Service
“The last major event that the news media covered was the memorial service, held on 29 March at Fort Bragg’s Ritz-Epps Fitness Center honor the twenty-three deceased paratroopers…
“Twenty-three helmets, twenty-three inverted rifles, and twenty three pairs of boots stood at attention on the Ritz-Epps Fitness Center stage in honor of the fallen soldiers, a traditional Army commemoration for the dead. As each name was called, a paratrooper marched up to the stage, halted in front of a helmet, rifle, and pair of boots; slowly saluted, and marched off. The helmets and boots were given to the families after the ceremony. The rifles were returned to the Fort Bragg arms room.
“Among the more than 3,500 people crowded into the Ritz-Epps Fitness Center to honor those who had perished were the wounded survivors of the accident. Some walked in, white gauze covering their burned hands and legs. One hobbled in on crutches. A number were in wheelchairs. Several came on hospital beds or gurneys, pushed forward by nurses, family, or friends. The crowd parted to allow them a better view closer to the front.
“Civilian and military dignitaries attended the ceremony, including Secretary of Defense Perry; General Sullivan; General Merrill A. McPeak, the Air Force chief of staff; and General Wayne A. Downing, commander in chief of the U.S. Special Operations Command. The speakers were General Steele, Colonels McChrystal and Austin, and Perry….
“The deceased paratroopers were from fifteen states, ranged in age from nineteen to thirty-five, and held ranks from private to captain. Most were veteran jumpers; one was jumping with his unit for the first time. Some gave their lives to save others….
The Last Victim
“Spc. Martin “Marty” R. Lumbert, Jr., of the 2d Battalion, 504th Infantry, was standing next to a short cement wall, topped by a chain link fence, when the crash occurred. Unable to outrun the fireball as it rolled through the staging area, he crouched down by the wall instinctively assuming a fetal position and covering his face with his hands. Within minutes he was on fire, with his back, legs, and hands burned severely.
“Lumbert arrived in San Antonio on 30 March with the last group of Fort Bragg soldiers to leave Womack Army Medical Center. During the almost seven months he was at the USAISR burn unit, he received twenty-eight graftings, each one taking four to six hours to complete. Because of the extent of his injuries on 88 percent of his body, his head was the only donor skin site.
“Additional suffering included amputations of both legs and all fingers; only part of his left thumb remained intact. Nevertheless, he learned to write and to feed himself, for his fellow soldier patients would not let him give up.
“Hope Ramirez, Lumbert’s mother and a registered nurse, was dissatisfied with the cleanliness of her son’s room and the medical attention he received during the first few weeks. Concerned about infection, she complained to the USAISR staff about the cleanliness of his bed and its surroundings and the procedures used for treatment. Mrs. Ramirez liked the young doctor who treated her son, but was disappointed that he was not receiving one-on-one care from a more experienced burn specialist, considering his extensive injuries. She tried unsuccessfully to have him transferred to a private burn center in California, believing that he could receive the special medical attention warranted by his condition at a facility employing more modern techniques and having more up-to-date and sanitary wards than at the institute. Colonel Pruitt, the USAISR commander, refused to transfer Lumbert on the basis that he would not be able to grant the same request to other soldiers at the burn unit….
“The first Fort Bragg soldier patient was discharged from the USAISR burn unit on 4 April. By late June all but Lumbert had left–thirty-four returning to duty, four transferring to rehabilitation facilities, and four going on convalescent leave.
“Specialist Lumbert remained at the USAISR burn unit until October, when he was transferred to a private rehabilitation center in San Antonio. He died on 3 January 1995 at a Methodist hospital near Fort Sam Houston. Lumbert’s death brought to twenty-four the number of soldiers fatally injured in the disaster on Green Ramp.” (Condon-Rall 1996, Chapter 5: Sustained Response.)
Appendix: The Deceased Paratroopers [24]
“Sgt. Alexander P. Bolz…Karlsruhe, Germany…born on 21 October 1970…survived by parents.
“Pfc. Tommy J. Caldwell…Senath, MO…born [3-20-1972]…survived by…wife…two children.
“S. Sgt. Daniel Camargo…Colorado Springs, CO…born [4-6-1962]…wife and five children.
“Spc. Bee Jay Cearley…Bacliff, TX…born [5-2-1966]…survived by his wife and two children.
“Spc. Sean M. Dixon…Montrose, CO…born [8-7-1973]…survived by his mother and brother.
“Capt. Christopher D. Dunaway…Mena, AR…born [4-11-1967]…survived by his wife.
“S. Sgt. Charles W. Elliott…Hempstead, NY…born…9-9-1966]…wife and two children.
“Pfc. Paul B. Finnegan…Bozeman, MT…born…[2-10-1974]…survived by his parents.
“Pvt. Mark E. Fritsch…Honesdale, PA…born…[2-13-1975]…survived…parents…two siblings.
“Sgt. Gustavo E. Gallardo…San Diego, CA…born…11-7-1971]…survived by…mother…sister.
“Sgt. Mark G. Gibson…Eagle River, AK…born…[12-14-1964]…survived by his wife and child.
“Capt. Kenneth J. Golla…Champaign, IL…born…[1-11-1965]…survived by his wife and child.
“Pvt. Phillip J. Harvey…Lorain, OH…born…[2-20-1974]…survived by his parents.
“S.Sgt. James C. Howard…San Antonio, TX…born [4-18-1966]…survived…wife…two children
“Pfc. Andrew J. Jones…Vallejo, CA…born…8-15-1974]…survived by his wife and child.
“Spc. Martin R. Lumbert, Jr.,…San Antonio, TX…born…[9-29-1972]… survived by…mother.
“S. Sgt. Alan D. Miller…Stockbridge, GA…born…[3-9-1964]… survived by his parents.
“Sgt. Harry L. Momoa, Jr.,…Waianae, HA…[11-28-1967]…survived by…wife…three children.
“Sgt. Gregory D. Nunes…Centerburg, OH…born…[1-22-1971]…survived by his parents.
“S. Sgt. Daniel E. Price…Albany, GA…born…8-11-1968]…survived by his wife.
“Sgt. Waddington Sanchez…Paterson, NJ…8-14-1955]…survived by…wife…five children.
“Sgt. Vincent S. Strayhorn…Pollocksville, NC…born…[2-6-1966]…survived by his wife.
“Sgt. James M. Walters, Jr.,…National City, CA…born…[11-30-1968]…survived by…mother.
“Pfc. Matthew J. Zegan…Toms River, NJ…born…[12-8-1972]…survived by his wife.”
(Condon-Rall, Mary Ellen. Disaster on Green Ramp: The Army’s Response. Washington, DC: Center of Military History, United States Army. 1996.)
Gero: Three USAF aircraft involved. “The jet fighter [F-16D; 88-0171] and the turboprop transport [C-130; 68-10942] collided in mid-air as both were approaching to land at Pope Air Force Base, and the former then crashed and skidded across the tarmac into a staging area where some 500 army paratroopers were preparing to board parked aircraft, including the C-141 [66-0173].
“Hit by debris, the jet transport was destroyed in a fiery explosion. The disaster claimed the lives of 23 military personnel on the ground and injured 100 others. Both airmen in the F-16 ejected and parachuted to earth, while the damaged C-130 landed safely without injury to its five-member crew.
“An official inquiry regarded as a major factor in the collision confusing instructions given to the F-16 by a civilian tower controller at Fayetteville Regional Airport, who first issued it a traffic advisory concerning the C-130, then cleared 880171 for a straight-in approach to Runway 23 at the military base during a simulated engine failure. After the advisory, the fighter pilot did not ask the tower about the position of the transport, and did not break off the simulated flame-out. A trainee controller tried to alert the fighter pilot regarding the presence of 68-10942, but used the wrong call sign. The collision occurred in visual meteorological conditions at an approximate altitude of 300 ft.” (Gero 2006, 163)
Wikipedia: “The Green Ramp disaster was a 1994 mid-air collision and subsequent ground collision at Pope Air Force Base (Pope AFB), North Carolina that killed twenty-four members of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division preparing for an airborne operation. It was the worst peacetime loss of life suffered by the Division since the end of World War II.
“Crash: The “Green Ramp” is the large north-south parking ramp at the west end of Pope AFB’s east-west runway, used by the U.S. Army and Air Force to stage joint operations. Several buildings sit along its western edge, including Building 900, the building housing the Air Force operations group. A pax shed (a large open-bay building) sat next to Building 900, which the Army used to prepare troops for parachute drops. A large grassy area, where troops could stage before drops, lay between the two buildings. Behind the area, several concrete mock-ups of the backs of Air Force cargo aircraft had been constructed, where troops could rehearse their drop procedures.
“On the day of the accident, about 500 paratroopers from Fort Bragg were in the pax shed, the concrete mock-ups or resting in the grassy area. While the jumpers prepared to board several C-130s and C-141 aircraft parked on Green Ramp, the sky was filled with Air Force F-16, A-10 and C-130 aircraft conducting Air Force training….
“Ground collision…the F-16…hit Green Ramp heading west. The aircraft struck the ground in an empty parking place between two Air Force C-130s with crews on board preparing the aircraft for departure. When the F-16 hit the ground, its momentum carried the wreckage westward through the right wing of a C-141 (66-0173, of the 438th Airlift Wing, McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey) parked on the ramp. The C-141 crew was also preparing the aircraft for joint Army-Air Force operations, however, no Army troops had yet boarded the plane. The wreckage of the F-16 punctured the fuel tanks in the C-141’s right wing, causing a large fireball which combined with the F-16 wreckage and continued on a path taking it between Building 900 and the Pax Shed, directly into the area where the mass of Army paratroopers were sitting and standing. Twenty-three men died and over 80 were injured; one severely burned paratrooper died later on 3 January 1995.
“Paratroopers at the scene pulled troopers from the flames and the exploding 20mm F-16 ammunition. Military and civilian vehicles were commandeered to ferry the injured to Womack Army Medical Center….
“Aftermath….A subsequent U.S. Air Force investigation placed most of the blame for the accident on the military and civilian air traffic controllers working Pope air traffic that day. A later investigation, however, stated that pilot error by the F-16 pilots also contributed to the mishap. The ramifications of the Air Force decision, since abandoned, of operating dissimilar aircraft (in this case C-130s and F-16s) at the same air base were not examined by the two accident investigation boards.”[2] (Wikipedia. “Green Ramp disaster.” 2-1-2012 modification.)
Newspapers:
March 24: “Pope Air Force Base, N.C. (AP) — An abandoned fighter jet skidded across a runway after a collision in the air with a transport plane, hurling flaming debris at Army paratroopers waiting for a jump. At least 15 people were killed and 91 injured.
“Survivors described the terror they felt as the fireball hurtled toward them. ‘I made about three steps and realized I wasn’t going to outrun it, so I started rolling in the sand,’ Capt. Michael Taylor, 35, an Army intelligence officer from Columbus, Ohio, said today.’ When I hit the ground, I didn’t think I was going to get up again.’
“The F-16D fighter and the C-130 Hercules transport collided less than 300 feel above the Air Force base Wednesday afternoon after both pilots thought they were cleared to land, said Brig. Gen. Bobby Floyd, a wing commander. ‘For some unknown reason they both appeared at the same time in the same place,’ Floyd said. ‘Obviously, there was a failure to communicate.’
“The C-130’s five-member crew landed safely despite losing a piece of the tail. The fighter pilot and a flier being trained ejected safely, but their abandoned jet crashed in flames and skidded across the runway at 180 mph.
“Flying metal punctured the fuel tanks of a C-141 transport plane preparing for takeoff, destroying the plane in a blaze. All six crew members aboard the C-141 escaped injury.
“The jet’s flaming hulk then skidded into a staging area where about 500 Army troops from the 82nd Airborne and other units from nearby Fort Bragg preparing for jumping exercises. The C-141 was going to take the paratroopers up. ‘I saw a huge fireball rolling at us. I only had a second to try to run,’ Army Sgt. Gregory Cowper, told the Fayetteville Observer-Times. ‘The fire caught up with me and I started rolling….Ammunition was going off. I couldn’t tell where it was. I looked to my left. There was a man on fire. I looked to my right, and there was a man on fire.’
“Fifteen people were killed and 91 injured, Fort Bragg spokesman Gene Sexton said today…. About 60 soldiers were hospitalized, most with burns and broken bones. A medical team specializing in bum injuries was sent from Fort Sam Houston near San Antonio. Col. Harold Timboe, commander of Womack Army Medical Center at Fort Bragg, said today they expected 21 of the injured to be sent to the Army bum unit at the Texas base. He said those people suffered bums that covered at least 50 percent of their bodies.
“The Army identified two of 15 victims as Capt. Kenneth J. Golla of Chicago and Sgt. Mark G. Gibson of Eagle River, Alaska. Family members confirmed that Capt. Chris Dunaway of Mena, Ark., also was among the dead….
“Investigators planned to examine tapes of the control tower’s instructions to the two planes that collided. Floyd said both planes were talking to the tower before the crash. Ordnance experts today were to scour the area for ammunition from the fighter jet’s 20 mm guns. The jet carried no bombs at the time, Floyd said.
“Floyd and other military officials praised the quick response of emergency crews from Pope and the adjacent Fort Bragg Army base. “As you can imagine it was pandemonium,” Floyd said at a news conference this morning. ‘An awful lot of individuals risked their lives to move aircraft and do things.’
“The fighter jet and the C-130 were assigned to Pope. The C-141 was from McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey….” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “15 dead in Pope crash.” 3-24-1994, 1.)
March 25: “Pope Air Force Base, N.C. (AP) — Placing blame on someone isn’t the aim of a military investigation into a multi-aircraft collision that left at least 20 soldiers dead, an Air Force spokesman said. ‘The purpose is not to find fault,’ said Lt. Col. Glenn Williams, chief safety officer for the 23rd Wing, where the three planes involved in the fiery crash were attached. ‘The purpose is to find out what happened to make sure we don’t repeat this accident,’ he said.
“A team of crash investigators arrived at the base Thursday to begin determining why an F-16D Fighting Falcon and a C-130 Hercules were trying to land on the same runway at the same time Wednesday. ‘That’ll probably be one of the first questions the safety board will ask,’ said Brig. Gen. Bobby Floyd, commander of the 23rd Wing…. ‘’I cannot tell you why two aircraft were in that position at the same time.’ Investigators will have at least a month to provide an answer.
“When the F-16D and C-130 collided, the then-pilotless fighter skidded into a stationary C-141 Starlifter and a training area where at least 500 Army troopers from adjoining Fort Bragg were deployed. The gas tanks on the C-141 exploded, creating a huge fireball, military officials said.
Eighty-five others were injured, officials said….
“The Air Force has rules requiring planes to maintain a certain distance from each other, but in some situations — such as clear weather like Wednesday’s — visual flight rules apply. ‘The only rules are that the planes are to avoid each other,’ Capt. Richard Ham, commander of Air Force traffic controller training at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Miss., told The Charlotte Observer. Ham said it’s not uncommon for controllers to clear two planes to land at the same time, even planes so markedly different as a fighter jet and a transport….
“Floyd said the midair collision caused extensive damage to the nose of the F-16, making it impossible for the pilot to guide the jet to the ground.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Investigators probing fatal crash.” 3-25-1994, 1.)
March 26: “Pope Air Force Base, N.C. (AP) President Clinton surveyed the charred site of a devastating military plane crash Friday and visited with two dozen soldiers burned in the tragedy. “It was very, very moving, and I’m very glad I came,” Clinton said after his hospital visits. The sky was overcast and the air heavy as Clinton’s motorcade crawled by the burnt, crumbled remains of the C-141 transport plane that exploded Wednesday after being hit by an F-16 that had collided with another plane in midair. The president left his car to view the area where 500 paratroopers waiting to board the C-141 were engulfed by an inferno. The death total had climbed to 22 by the time of Clinton’s somber visit. Clinton said he made “small talk” with burn victims at the Womack Army Medical Center at adjacent Fort Bragg.” (Aiken Standard, SC. “Clinton Visits Soldiers.” 3-26-1994, p. 1.)
March 27: “Pope Air Force Base, N.C. (AP) — Pope Air Force Base changed the flight paths for F-l6s last year because of residents’ concerns about safety and noise and the Army’s concerns about training, an officer said. After taking off and before landing, the planes turn away from places where people live and where soldiers train, said Lt. Col. Glenn Williams, the officer in charge of safety at Pope. ‘But we would not ask the pilots to do anything that they could not do safely,’ Williams said Friday. He said he could not speculate on whether the changes in flight paths had anything to do with Wednesday’s crash.
“Twenty-three soldiers were killed and 101 injured when a C-141 transport plane exploded in flames as some 500 paratroopers prepared to board. It was hit by an F-16D that had collided with another plane in midair. The 82nd Airborne Division will hold a memorial ceremony at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday for the paratroopers who were killed.
“Relatives of the dead asked questions Friday about why the crash occurred. “I’m very disgusted. Why were there two planes there?” asked Rebecca Camargo, wife of Staff Sgt. Daniel Camargo.
She said she was at the base about an hour before the accident. ‘There were a lot of planes out there in the air that day.’ she said. ‘I know somebody messed up royally out there and I want that answer. I want to know why.’
“Others are concerned about safety, including some Spring Lake residents near Pope and some Fort Bragg paratroopers….One of the paratroopers who survived the disaster said the F-16s make skies much busier above the Pope landing area. “Sometimes it looked like a swarm of bees up there,” the soldier, who didn’t want to be identified, told the Fayetteville Observer-Times.
“Williams said Pope was and is safe. “We in the Air Force know how to control air traffic,” he said. Pope will not change its operations unless the outside team investigating the crash determines that changes are needed, Williams said….
“Pope officials gave toxicology tests to all of the pilots and crew involved to see if they had taken alcohol or drugs. The results were sealed in an envelope and given to the outside investigators. Williams retrieved the tapes of the pilots’ conversations from the Pope tower and the tower in Fayetteville. He confiscated records of the flights. The Pope team impounded all of
the training and personnel records of the pilots, crew members, mechanics and controllers. The names of the pilots have not been released.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “F-16 flight path changed last year.” 3-27-1994, 1.)
March 28: “Fayetteville (AP) – A 1993 congressional study warning against concentrating squadrons at Pope Air Force Base has surfaced in the wake of a fiery plane collision that killed 23 soldiers. A 1993 study by the General Accounting Office, an investigative arm of Congress, cautioned against using Pope and Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho as headquarters for many squadrons of different planes.
“The study also raised concerns about whether Pope could accommodate large-scale training. “Currently available ranges . . .are too small to support force-level training,” the study said.
“Pilots, crews and paratroopers train together daily at Pope and Fort Bragg, which are adjacent. Pope Air Force Base once housed only transport planes. Since the end of the Cold War, the Fayetteville base quietly has been transformed into one of just two special strike force wings in the nation – along with Mountain Home. Squadrons of F-J6 fighter jets and A-10 attack craft joined Pope C-130 transports to form the 23rd Wing: 78 planes designed to work as a quick-deployment team.
“Yet critics — from civilians in Fayetteville to congressional auditors in Washington — have questioned whether Pope was the place for the 23rd Wing. The base has 26 more planes than five years ago, but only one runway. An F-I6D and a C-130 Hercules tried to land on it at the same time Wednesday and collided, touching off the deadliest Air Force accident in at least a decade.
“The congressional study, commissioned by U.S. Rep. Earl Hutto, R-Fla., focused on cost-effectiveness and the need for the $200 million composite wings, rather than safety. But the study did say the Air Force had not sufficiently researched its selection of Pope and Mountain Home, or analyzed alternate bases, The Charlotte Observer reported.
“Air Force officials say safety was carefully considered when creating the composite wing at Pope. “I don’t see a hazard in the composite wing operations here at Pope,” says Col. Glenn Williams, the base’s top safety officer and an A-10 aviator. “But anytime you increase your flying hours, you increase the possibility you might have an accident.”
“Since June 1992, the Air Force gradually added planes and pilots, rather than bringing them in all at once, Williams said. Last to arrive, in June 1993, was a squadron of F-16 Fighting Falcons from South Carolina’s Shaw Air Force Base. Flight experts mapped out how the planes would share Pope’s single, 7,500-foot runway, Williams said. ‘Flying different airplanes off an air base is not new to the United States Air Force,’ he said. ‘It’s not new to our controllers to control different types of aircraft at the same time. While it might be new to the community, it’s not new to us.’
“A special Army-Air Force team of investigators from outside Pope-Fort Bragg is investigating the cause of Wednesday’s crash. The F-16 slammed to the ground after hitting the tail of the C-130. The fighter jet skidded into a C-141 transport plane as it prepared to board Army paratroopers from Fort Bragg. The C-141’s fuel tanks ruptured into a 25-foot-high fireball that engulfed fleeing soldiers, and set off live rounds of F-16 ammunition. “Nothing would stop burning,” said Staff Sgt. Timothy Gavaghan of Stamford, Conn. The flames were intensified by spilled aviation fuel. “Anything it stuck to would burn,” he said.
“So far, 23 men have died, all members of the 82nd Airborne. Another 80 paratroopers were injured, 20 of them burned so badly they were flown to a special burn unit at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Study warned against use of Pope AFB for several aircraft squadrons.” 3-28-1994, 2.)
March 29: “Fayetteville (AP) – More Fort Bragg soldiers are being moved this week to the military’s top burn recovery center following last week’s aircraft collision at Pope Air Force Base. Three soldiers severely burned in the crash arrived Monday at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio. Seventeen others are expected by Thursday. They will join 20 others who were flown to Brooke within a day after the fatal crash that killed 23 soldiers and injured about 100 people.
“Of the 20 already being treated, 11 are listed in critical condition and nine are considered serious. All are considered in life-threatening condition.
“Doctors on Monday operated on the first batch of patients. Six of those already at Brooke underwent skin graft operations to recover from burns that ranged from 10 percent to 87 percent of their bodies. Every burned soldier can expect about 2 hours of surgery for every 10 percent of his body burned, the doctor said. “Fortunately most soldiers won’t remember the intensive care unit,” said Col. William F. McManus, chief of the clinical division at the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research in San Antonio. Many are heavily medicated to ease the pain, he said.
“The new patients were flown from UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill to Kelly Air Force Base, across San Antonio from the burn center at Fort Sam Houston, the Fayetteville Observer-Times reported today. Brooke has treated soldiers in the Vietnam War and Desert Storm for specialized surgery on burned hands, feet, joints and faces, McManus said.
“Some of the burned 82nd Airborne Division paratroopers suffered metal puncture wounds, broken arms, legs and collar bones, or amputated limbs. Some will never jump again. All have second-degree burns and all but one have third-degree burns, so there will be scars for most.
“McManus said most of the patients from the Pope crash are concerned about their prognosis. It is a question that gets an honest answer, McManus said. “It’s like treating kiddies, if you lie to them, they’ll never trust you again,” he said.
“At the center, injured soldiers are separated into private units where the temperature is kept at 85 degrees and the humidity at 50 percent to keep them from losing water and body heat without their skin to protect them. Families come covered in protective clothes, and two family members
can visit twice a day each for an hour and a half.
“McManus said technology at the Brooke center has saved thousands of burned soldiers since World War I. Back then, a soldier burned more than 43 percent of his body had a 50 percent chance of living. Today, a soldier can be burned on 75 percent of his body, but have the same chance of living.
“Last week’s crash victims are much like those from Vietnam, Mc-Manus said. Most are in their 20s and in good health. A soldier in his 20s has among the best changes of surviving severe bums.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Operations begin for crash victims.” 3-29-1994, p. 2A.)
April 1: “San Antonio (AP) – Twenty more paratroopers burned in last week’s military plane collision in North Carolina arrived in San Antonio on Thursday for treatment at Brooke Army Medical Center, military officials said. The soldiers arrived on two late afternoon flights at Kelly Air Force Base and were being transported across town to Brooke.
“Some family members also arrived with the patients and will be housed in guest quarters on Fort Sam Houston, the Army post where Brooke is located, said base spokesman Phil Reidinger. “They (the latest arriving soldiers) are not injured as badly as the earlier ones. In fact many of them will be ambulatory (able to walk),” Brooke spokesman Bob Clark said. “They’re all headed to the bum unit.”
“Twenty-three soldiers already were being treated at Brooke, known worldwide for its specialized treatment of burn patients….
“The 43 injured soldiers in the Brooke bum unit is a record number of victims brought to the hospital from a single accident, the head of the famed bum unit said Wednesday. Col. Basil A. Pruitt Jr., commander of the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research since he returned from service in Vietnam in 1968, said the largest previous total from one accident was 37 Marines burned Oct. 19, 1979, when a fuel bladder split and sent a “river of fire” beneath their barracks at Camp Fuji, Japan.
“Pruitt said the first 23 North Carolina soldiers brought to BAMC “are doing as well as anyone could expect,” with 10 considered very seriously ill and 13 seriously ill.
“The burn unit, which normally has a ward staff of about 150 working eight-hour shifts, went to 12-hour shifts when the first 20 soldiers arrived March 24 and has expanded to a second ward, Pruitt said. The unit has 12 surgeons, and about nine more, including some Brooke alumni, have been brought in to help out.
“The paratroopers first brought to Brooke have been stabilized and are in the “wound-care” phase of treatment. Pruitt said. “That’s where we protect the burns with topical creams to prevent infection, and we also take them to the operating room on a scheduled basis and remove the burned tissue and start to cover it with the patient’s own unburned skin in the form of skin grafts,” he said. ‘We’re very encouraged by how they’re doing,’ Pruitt said.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “More crash victims arrive in Texas.” 4-1-1994, p. 2A.)
June 22: “Fayetteville (AP) – An air traffic controller’s misdirected instructions to an Air Force transport plane led to a collision with a fighter jet at Pope Air Force Base that killed 23 Army paratroopers, a published report said. In its June 27 edition, the Air Force Times said Air Force Safety Board investigators have submitted their conclusions to senior Air Force officials for review. Service spokesmen were quoted as saying the report may be made public by the end of June.
“The Air Force Times article, which also appeared in the June 27 edition of The Army Times, said the base’s control tower misdirected radio instructions to a C-130 Hercules transport airplane as it was landing, causing it to collide with an F-I6D fighter jet. “It was just one of those horror stories where everything that could go wrong did,” the story quoted an Air Force official familiar with the investigation as saying. “Confusion in the tower was the single most contributing factor.”
“The story cited unidentified sources close to the investigation as saying the instructions had been intended for another C-130 that already was on the ground. This confused the F-16 pilot, who was unaware he was virtually on top of the landing transport, the story said….”The lower thought it was talking to the C-130 that was landing, but it was using the call sign for the C-130 that had already landed,” the article quoted one source as saying. The call sign is an identifying radio name.
“Pope officials said the Air Force has not completed its investigation and declined to comment on the report. “The investigation process has a final few stages to go through,” Capt. Tyrone Woodyard, Pope’s public affairs officer, told the Fayetteville Observer-Times. “We want to make sure the Army is part of that process.” Woodyard said military officials would hold a news conference in the very near future to release the findings of their investigation. “I’m expecting it to happen in the next couple of weeks,” he said in a telephone interview Tuesday with The Associated Press. Woodyard said he did not know where the article got its information. “I know the sources are not from Pope Air Force Base,” he said. Both newspapers are independent of the military services.
“The C-130 that collided with the F-16 was returning from a training mission at the time of the crash. The F-16 was practicing a landing in which the pilot glides into the airfield with his engine idling to simulate landing with a failed engine. The article said the F-16 sheared off the right horizontal stabilizer of the C-130, knocking the nose off the F-16 and making it uncontrollable.
“The F-16 pilot attempted to recover the plane by engaging the plane’s afterburner and pulling back the stick, but the F-16’s flight-control system had been destroyed in the collision, the story said. The system feeds data into the flight-control computer.
“The story said investigators found that because the pilot engaged the afterburner, the plane accelerated and traveled farther along the flight line before it hit the ground, a factor that contributed heavily to the high number of casualties.
“Pope officials have declined to name the pilots or the air-traffic controller involved in the accident, and the article does not give names.
“The average air-traffic controller at Pope has more than three years of experience, and all meet Federal Aviation Administration certification.” (Robesonian, Lumberton, NC. “Report blames controller in crash.” 6-22-1994, p. 2A.)
July 2, AP: “The Associated Press. Pope Air Force Base, N.C. — Control-tower errors contributed to the collision between two aircraft that killed 23 paratroopers, military officials said Thursday. Their report also cited poor training of air controllers….
“The accident did not occur because the planes were operating off a single runway, said Lt. Gen. Michael Nelson, commander of the 9th Air Force, which includes Pope’s 23rd Wing. “It was a question of errors made, multiple errors,” he said.
“The sequence of errors began when a Federal Aviation Administration controller at Fayetteville Regional Airport gave the F-16 pilot clearance for a simulated flameout approach, but failed to notify the Pope tower on a hot line established for that purpose. The FAA directs military air traffic in the area until planes reach the jurisdiction of Pope, roughly 10 miles around the base.
“In a flameout drill, the pilot cuts engine power and practices gliding in for a landing with no engine. When close to landing, the pilot powers up the engines and takes off again.
“Pope controllers didn’t learn of the simulated flameout approach until seconds before the collision.
“A controller in training who was guiding the two planes tried to signal the landing C-130 but mistakenly used the code assigned to another C-130 that had already landed.
“Nelson said he couldn’t comment on possible disciplinary action but said the most severe could be court-martial.” (Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo. “Report: Tower caused crash.” 7-2-1994, 3)
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[1] Air Force News and C-141 Lifetime Mishap Summary / Lt. Col. Paul M. Hansen, USAFR, Ret. McChord AFB WA (1 October, 2004).
[2] Cites Alan E. Diehl. Silent Knights: Blowing the Whistle on Military Accidents and Their Cover-ups. 2003.