Two Incidents In Week Prompt Safety Stand Down
The US Navy's Training Air Wing 2 was expected to resume flight
operations Tuesday, one day after a T-45 Goshawk crashed about two
miles north of the Naval Air Station (NAS) Kingsville, on land
owned by the King Ranch in Texas.
The crash was the second incident within a week for the Training
Air Wing and Training Squadron (VT) 21. A flight instructor and
student aviator safely ejected prior to the crash. Both were
treated for minor injuries and released on October 1, according to
a Navy statement to ANN.
Training Air Wing 2, including VT-21 and VT-22, conducted a
safety stand down October 2 to review standard operating procedures
and Operational Risk Management measures. After the stand down was
completed, the Training Air Wing resumed its flight training
schedule.
"We took a pause for safety this morning to talk with our
instructor pilots and flight students," said Capt. Bill Davis,
Training Air Wing 2 commander. "We always stop and review our
procedures when something like this happens. We look at every
aspect of our flight training and ensure that we are doing things
the right way before we resume flying."
All flight operations at NAS Kingsville were suspended October 1
during the recovery efforts. Davis said he does not foresee any
interruption to the Wing’s training schedule.
"I have full confidence in the T-45 aircraft and both of our
training squadrons," Davis said. "We flew almost 35,000 flight
hours last year and historically, we have a very good safety
record. At this time, the two incidents do not appear to be related
other than the fact that they happened a few days apart."
An investigation into the cause of both crashes is underway.
Mishap investigation teams -- including personnel from the Navy
Safety Center and Training Air 2 -- are on site conducting the
investigations.
The crash site is only about a mile-and-a-half from NAS
Kingsville, but located on an area of King Ranch that presents
difficulties for investigators trying to access the site.
NAS Kingsville security personnel were able to make it to the
crash site October 1 by using ATVs with assistance from King Ranch
personnel, but still had to make their way through heavily mudded
areas in order to get to the aircraft.
The Navy is reviewing options on how to recover the aircraft
from the scene. Meanwhile, the recovery of the aircraft from a September 27 crash of a
Goshawk attached to Training Squadron 21 should be
concluded October 10.