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| Date: | Thursday 9 July 2009 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Beechcraft T-6A Texan II |
| Owner/operator: | United States Air Force - USAF |
| Registration: | 02-3644 |
| MSN: | PT-185 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Mantee, MS -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Columbus AFB, MS (CBM/KCBM) |
| Columbus AFB, MS (CBM/KCBM) |
Student pilot 2nd Lt. Falah Al-Obaidi, an international student in the Aviation Leadership program was flying a solo mission in a T-6A assigned to the 37th Flying Training Squadron. The mission was to practice aerobatics in the Columbus Air Force Base Area 5 Military Operating Area. About 45 minutes into the flight, the student pilot began a series of aerobatic maneuvers, beginning with three leaves of a clover-leaf pattern and ending with two consecutive loops. According to the investigation report the maneuvers were characterized by incorrect airspeed throughout.
On his final loop, Lieutenant Al-Obaidi released back pressure on the control stick, stabilizing the T-6A at 90 degrees nose up. As the aircraft lost airspeed it transitioned into a steep right bank dive. When the pilot attempted to recover to level flight the steep nose down attitude and rapidly decreasing altitude caused him to think he'd entered a spin or spiral. Once his altitude was below 6,000 feet, the pilot elected to eject.
Lieutenant Al-Obaidi was treated for minor injuries and released from Columbus (Miss.) Baptist Hospital. The T-6A was completely destroyed and there was minor property damage at the crash site.
The accident investigation board (AIB) determined the cause of this mishap was a result of pilot error.
Sources:
Scramble.
https://www.columbus.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/353807/t-6a-accident-investigation-complete/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 16-Jun-2021 15:43 | TB | Added |
| 16-Jun-2021 19:50 | TB | Updated [Total fatalities, Total occupants, Location, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 09-Oct-2025 14:29 | Zorchin | Updated [Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
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