Fatal A-10 crash blamed on ‘loss of situational awareness’

Jace Radke

Thursday, May 15, 2003 | 11:13 a.m.

Air Force investigators have determined that a pilot killed when two fighters collided over the Nevada Test and Training Range in December failed to properly rejoin a formation of aircraft, causing the crash.

Capt. Eric Palaro, a pilot assigned to the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany was killed in the crash of two A-10 Thunderbolt IIs on Dec. 4.

According to an Air Combat Command Accident Investigation Board report released today, it was determined that Palaro experienced a, "loss of situational awareness ... and never had sight of the formation's element leader because he mistook another aircraft as the lead."

In addition, the report states that the lead aircraft pilot continued with a planned simulated ground attack without "visually confirming that his wingman was properly positioned."

Scott Kniep, an instructor with the Air Force Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base, ejected from the second fighter involved in the collision and suffered only minor injuries.

The two planes crashed about 2 p.m. north of Yucca Mountain near Tolicha Peak in a portion of the range between Beatty and Tonopah. About 40 aircraft were involved in the routine air-to-air combat training session, Nellis officials said.

The A-10s, known as Warthogs, cost about $9.8 million apiece and were destroyed on impact. The total cost of the accident is estimated at more than $22 million, Nellis officials said.

Warthogs have been involved in nine crashes over the past five years, and December's crash was the second time A-10s were involved in a crash at Nellis. On Sept. 3, 2001, a fighter pilot ejected safely before his A-10 struck a mountain near Mesquite about 90 miles northeast of Las Vegas.

A-10s are among the oldest aircraft in U.S. military service, with the first fighters completed in 1975 and the last aircraft coming off the assembly line in 1982.

The twin-engine, single seat aircraft is designed for close air support against tanks and armored vehicles. Its main weapons include a 30mm Gatling gun and up to 16,000 pounds of bombs.

Currently A-10s are based at Nellis with the 57th Wing, in Maine and at Spangdahlem. The planes were used in Operation Iraqi Freedom against armored Iraqi positions and tanks.

The most recent aircraft crash at Nellis involved an F-15C Eagle going down about 65 miles northeast of Las Vegas on March 17. The pilot ejected safely from the fighter, and the cause of the crash remains under investigation.