OTTAWA – Investigators are continuing to narrow their focus while providing an update into the July 23rd crash of a CF-18 during an airshow practice in Lethbridge Alberta.
During the practice at Lethbridge County Airport, Hornet CF188738 experienced a loss of thrust from its right engine while conducting a high alpha pass at 300 ft above ground level.
Unaware of the loss of thrust but feeling the aircraft sink, the pilot selected military power on both throttles to the arrest descent. The aircraft continued to sink and the pilot selected afterburner on both throttles. The aircraft immediately began to yaw right and continued to rapidly yaw/roll right, despite compensating control column and rudder pedal inputs. At approximately 150 feet AGL and about 90 degrees of right bank, the pilot ejected from the aircraft. The aircraft continued to yaw/roll right with its nose descending in a tight right descending corkscrew prior to hitting the ground nose first.
The ejection and seat-man separation worked flawlessly but the pilot was injured when he touched down firmly under a stable chute. After landing, the parachute shroud lines became entangled around the pilot’s left leg and the parachute re‑inflated before it could be released, causing him to be dragged several hundred meters. The pilot was able to release the remaining Koch fittings just as members of the Sky Hawks, the Canadian Forces parachute demonstration team, arrived on scene to provide assistance. First aid was administered to the pilot who was subsequently transported to the Regional Hospital.
Field examination of the engines did not reveal any anomalies. Both engines were sent to the Quality Engineering and Test Establishment for a detailed inspection. Concurrently, photogrammetric analysis is taking place to ascertain certain flight and engine parameters which could not be recovered from the Advanced Memory Unit and other recording devices. Finally, modeling and simulation has been undertaken to better understand the factors such as throttle splits and altitude affecting the aircraft’s recovery under various conditions.
The investigation will be focusing on the loss of thrust experienced by the right-hand engine, the factors that precluded an in-flight recovery of the aircraft, and CF-18 demonstration pilot training.
