Due to injuries sustained when an ejection seat deployed while the pilot was on the ground at Sheppard Air Force Base on Monday, a U.S. Air Force instructor pilot passed away on Tuesday.
During ground operations on Monday, the ejection seat of the unidentified instructor pilot in a propeller-driven, single-engine, two-seat T-6A Texan II training aircraft triggered.
The fatal event occurred on Monday at approximately 1:55 p.m. CDT, and according to Air Force officials, the pilot passed away early on Tuesday morning.
The pilot’s name will not be disclosed by the Air Force until 24 hours have passed since notifying the pilot’s family, and they are currently looking into what caused the seat ejection.
The pilot worked for the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program, which is run by the 80th Flying Training Wing. NATO pilots receive basic training at the multinational school to enable them to fly combat and support aircraft.
Two years prior, the Air Force had grounded 203 T-38 training jets and 76 T-6 training aircraft because of possible ejection seat defects.
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The explosive cartridges used in the ejection seats may have flaws, according to the Air Force Materiel Command, but after two months of inspections, no problematic cartridges were discovered.
The average age of an Air Force T-6 aircraft is 17, but the average age of a T-38 aircraft is 56.
According to Air Force officials, the training aircraft’s advanced age hinders the process of producing certified pilots through training.
