Report: Air Force Reserves Fighter Pilot Crashed Apache Helicopter

F-35 pilot had only 35 minutes of sim time in an Apache before he took off, an Army probe revealed.

Russ Niles

Tuesday, September 03, 2024 at 10:48 AM ET

Verified

Edited By: tccjeremy

[Screenshot of KUTV video/ Courtesy: AVweb]

Key Takeaways:

An Army investigation determined that an F-35 pilot, a colonel with only 35 minutes of simulator experience, crashed a Utah National Guard Apache helicopter he was unqualified to fly.
The crash resulted from the pilot panicking during a landing attempt and incorrectly applying fixed-wing aircraft controls to the rotor-wing helicopter.
The accompanying qualified master warrant officer was also faulted for overconfidence and inadequate flight control management while the unqualified pilot was at the controls.

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An Army investigation found an F-35 pilot with no previous experience in the type was at the controls of an Utah National Guard Apache attack helicopter when it crashed at a base in the state in February.

According to Salt Lake City’s KUTV, which got a copy of the report, the pilot was a colonel, and he had just 35 minutes of sim time in the Apache before he took off on an orientation flight with a master warrant officer who was qualified in the type.