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| Date: | Sunday 20 January 1974 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  General Dynamics YF-16 Fighting Falcon |
| Owner/operator: | General Dynamics |
| Registration: | 72-1567 |
| MSN: | 60-1 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Location: | Edwards Air Force Base (EDW/KEDW), CA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Taxi |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Edwards AFB, CA (EDW/KEDW) |
| Edwards AFB, CA (EDW/KEDW) |
While performing high-speed ground tests, test pilot Phil Oestricher nearly lost control of the aircraft when it entered a series of roll oscillations. Oestricher elected to take the craft airborne to avoid crashing and remained in flight for six minutes. The aircraft made light impact to the runway before taking off, damaging the starboard stabilator and the fin of the port-side wingtip-mounted missile. The jet was repaired and returned to service shortly after, being accepted by the USAF in March of 1975.
Sources:
https://www.f-16.net/aircraft-database/F-16/airframe-profile/1/
https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/a30645599/f-16-first-flight/
https://theaviationgeekclub.com/impressive-video-shows-yf-16-first-unintentional-flight-first-mishap/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Dynamics_F-16_Fighting_Falcon
https://duotechservices.com/the-first-flight-that-technically-wasnt-yf16
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 24 June 1976 | 72-1567 | US Air Force (USAF) | 0 | Edwards Air Force Base (EDW/KEDW), CA | |
sub |
Media:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Jan-2024 08:36 | nhofmann54 | Added |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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