THURSDAY,JANUARY 21, 1999

THE POST-STANDARD

Jet Crashes in Oswego County

 

The pilot ejected and is fine. Williamstown residents evacuated. Route 30 closed.

 

By Melanie Gleaves-Hirsch and Peter Ortiz Staff writers

 

An A-10 military aircraft screamed over the rooftops of homes in northern Oswego County before crashing in a gigantic fireball in the town of Williamstown shortly after 8 p.m. Wednesday.  The pilot ejected from the single-seat aircraft and landed without injuries. according to military officials and witnesses.  "He's wet and shook up, but otherwise he's fine," said Lt. Col. Michael Waters, speaking for the 174th Fighter Wing in Mattydale, which dispatched a search team to the heavily wooded crash area.  The pilot, whose name was not available early today. was rescued by an Army Blackhawk helicopter and flown to a clinic at Fort Drum in Jefferson County.

 

About 50 people from 20 homes along Kaine Road, C.C. Road and County Route 17 were evacuated after 9 p.m. because of fuel from the crash. said Williamstown Fire Chief Chip Hamblin. They were to remain out of their homes overnight.  Maj. Carey Merritt of the 174th Fighter Wing, who was in Williamstown early today, said there was nothing dangerous from the practice ordnance. He urged people not to touch debris because moving it could interfere with the investigation.

 

State police were patrolling the area overnight, and volunteers were at intersections to discourage people from entering the area. Police also closed parts of Route 30 in Williamstown.  The pilot was flying in formation with another military aircraft when his plane crashed, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters. The second plane is believed to have landed safely, Peters said.  The planes were returning to Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield, Mass., from Fort Drum, Peters said.  -(The pilot) was practicing on an air-to-ground gunnery range" at Fort Drum, Waters said.

 

The low-flying jet went over houses on Kaine Road around 8: 10 p.m. before crashing in the woods about one-quarter mile southeast of 379 Kaine Road, the home of Williamstown highway superintendent Henry H. Allen and his wife. Jackie.  Henry Allen said military jets frequently fly over his home.  A "heck of a rumble, a terrible rumble" with the screeching sound of a snowplow on a bare road alerted the Aliens, Henry Allen said. At first, he thought it was a highway crew plowing. He looked out the window to check when his wife cried. "That plane is going to go down!"  The plane, coming from the west, was at tree-top level over the house, Henry Allen said.  "When I first heard the noise. I tried to figure out what it was. Then. the next thing I knew, I saw this great big fireball" after impact, he said. "There was this huge crash, then silence."  Allen lives about a mile and a half from the intersection of Kaine Road and Route 30. He thought the plane crashed less than a half mile southeast of his home.  Agneta Ingersoll of 291 Kaine Road was watching television when she heard terrible thundering and looked out her bay window to investigate. She saw a bright light, then heard the metallic impact.  At first I thought the sound was thunder, but then I thought, 'That can't be, right,' " Ingersoll said "There was a bright light, and then an explosion. It happened so fast."

After the Impact, Ingersoll saw what she believes to be military aircraft over the crash site.

 

The pilot ejected by yanking a yellow handle' that activates an emergency evacuation system, Waters said. As part of his survival  pack, the pilot carried a two-way radio and an emergency device designed to direct rescuers to his location, Waters said.  Peters, the FAA spokesman, said it is not clear what caused the crash.  Because the accident involved a military plane, the military and not the FAA will investigate the cause, Peters said.  The military pilots were flying under the control of FAA air traffic controllers in Nashua, N.H., said Peters, who did not have details on the whereabouts of the second plane.

 

Personnel from the 174th Fighter Wing at Hancock Field are helping to cordon off the accident area and will help search for the wreckage, Waters said. Searchers had a general idea where the wreckage was but called off the search because it was dark and the terrain was rugged. About 50 Williamstown firefighters and 12 more from Orwell helped with the search.  The search will resume today.  The A-10s saw combat in Operation Desert Storm, where they proved to be effective. "They gained considerable fame in Desert Storm by shoot. ing tip Iraqi tanks," Waters said.  Syracuse's Air National Guard squadron flew A- I 0s until 1988 when F/A-16 Fighting Falcon jets replaced them at the Hancock Field base in Mattydale.

 

Staff writers Edwin Acevedo, Louis Perez, Marsha Ducey and Robert Baker contributed to this report.

 

THURSDAY,JANUARY 21, 1999

   THE SYRACUSE HERALD JOURNAL

PILOT ESCAPED THIS

Searchers find wreck from crash

Remoteness of site made finding wreckage difficult.

By Angie Niehaus
Staff Writer

A team of investigators this morning found the wreckage of an Air Force A-10 fighter jet that crashed in a fireball Wednesday night in a heavily wooded area of Oswego County.   Military and local law enforcement personnel found the plane at 7:40 a.m. in a swampy area about a mile north of Kasoag Lake in the town of Wil. liamstown, said Lt. Col. Scott Anderson of the 174th Fighter Wing in Mattydale. The jet smashed into hundreds of pieces, but the life of the pilot was spared.

The pilot of the single-seat jet ejected moments before the crash and landed without injuries. He was taken to the clinic at Fort Drum, near Watertown, and was reported in good condition this morning, with minor cuts and bruises.  Military officials have not released the pilot's name, but Maj. Brian Barnes of the 174th said he spoke to the pilot, who reported, "I'm fine." Barnes said investigators have not ruled out pilot error as the 'cause of the crash, which happened as the plane headed home after gunnery practice.

Barnes said the crash site was tough to find because it's in a very remote area." He said investigators are finding it difficult to get to the scene because of packed snow, 2 1/2 to 3 feet deep in the woods. Snowmobiles are being used to clear a path to the wreckage, Barnes said.

About 50 residents, from 20 homes along Kaine Road, C,C. Road and County Route - 17, returned home early today after being evacuated because of the danger posed by leaking jet fuel, said Williamstown Fire Chief Chip Hamblin.  The plane was carrying 480 rounds 'of 30mm practice ordnance. Jeff Wallace, a, spokesman for the 174th said the training ammunition is not live. He urged people not to touch any debris, however, because moving it could interfere with the inquiry.

Investigators from the 174th and from the 104th Fighter Wing based in Barnes, Mass. home base for the pilot and A-10 - are using the Williamstown Fire Department as a command center., Early this morning, Military personnel huddled over maps as radios crackled with new reports about the crash. About 40 people from the 174th, along with local police and firefighters, were involved in the search.  State police patrolled the area overnight, and troopers today were still blocking off parts of Route 30 where it entered C.C. Road and Kaine Road.

Larry Walker and his family were heading home to Base Ridge Road Wednesday night, about a mile from the crash site, when they were stopped by state troopers on Route 30 and 30A. They tried an alternate route but were again told they could not go that way.   "We were told there was a plane down and they were still trying to locate it," Walker said. "I guess the pilot dumped all of his fuel and also had quite a bit of (ammunition) on board. Apparently, they were afraid it ,would blow up."   The fire department. contacted the Walkers at midnight and said the family could return home.

I The pilot was flying information with another military aircraft when his plane crashed, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Jim Peters.  The planes were returning to Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield, Mass., from Fort Drum Peters said. The twin-engine A-10 was based at Barnes.  "(The pilot) was practicing on an air-to-ground gunnery range at Fort Drum, Lt. Col. Michael Waters of the 174th said.

The low-flying jet went over houses on Kaine Road around 8:10 p.m. before crashing in the woods about one-quarter mile southeast of 379 Kaine Road, the home of Williamstown highway superintendent Henry H. Allen and his wife, Jackie.  Henry Allen said military jets frequently fly over his home.  A 'heck of a rumble, a terrible rumble,' with the screeching sound of a snowplow on a bare road alerted the Aliens, Henry Allen said. At first, he thought it was one of his highway crews plowing. He looked out the window to check the noise when his wife cried, "That plane is going to go down!"  The plane, coming from the west, was at treetop level over the Allen house, Henry Allen said.   "When I first heard the noise, I tried to figure out what it was. Then, the next, thing I knew, I saw this great big fireball" after impact, he said. "There was this huge crash, then silence."  Allen lives about a mile and a half from the intersection of Kaine Road and Route 30.

Agneta Ingersoll of 291 Kaine Road was watching television when she heard a terrible thundering and looked out her bay window to investigate. She saw a bright light, then heard the metallic impact.  At first I thought the sound was thunder, but then I thought, 'That can't be right,"' Ingersoll said. "There was a bright light, and then an explosion. It happened so fast."  After the impact, Ingersoll saw what she believes to be military aircraft over the crash site.

The pilot ejected by yanking a yellow handle that activates an emergency evacuation system, Waters said. As part of his survival pack, the pilot carried a two-way radio and an emergency device designed to direct rescuers to his location, Waters said.   Because the accident involved a military plane, the military and not the FAA will investigate the cause, Peters said.

The military pilots were flying under the control of FAA air-traffic controllers in Nashua, N.H., said Peters, who did not have details on the whereabouts of the second plane.  The A-10s saw combat in Operation Desert Storm, where they proved to be effective.  "They gained considerable fame in Desert Storm by shooting up Iraqi tanks," Waters said.  Syracuse's Air National Guard squadron flew A-10s until 1988, when F/A-16 Fighting Falcon jets replaced them at the Hancock Field base in Mattydale.

Staff writers Peter Ortiz, Melanie Gleaves-Hirsch, Janet Gramza, Stephen Watson, Edwin Acevedo, Louis Perez, Marsha Ducey and Robert Baker contributed to this report.

Air Force plane crashes in upstate New York
10.40 a.m. ET (1541 GMT) January 21, 1999

WILLIAMSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) — Military investigators are trying to determine what caused a Massachusetts Air National Guard fighter jet to crash after screaming over the rooftops of homes in upstate New York.

The pilot of the $8.8 million A-10 ejected before the jet crashed Wednesday night in a swampy area near Kasoag Lake, about 30 miles north of Syracuse. The
pilot suffered only minor cuts and bruises, said R.D. Murphy, a spokesman for Fort Drum Army base.

The jet flew at treetop level over houses and crashed in the woods about a quarter-mile southeast of the home of Agneta Ingersoll, who was watching television when she heard a terrible thundering and looked out her window. "At first I thought the sound was thunder, but then I thought, `That can't be right,''' Ingersoll said. "There was a bright light, and then an explosion. It happened so fast.''

About 20 homes near the crash site were evacuated because of fuel from the crash, said Williamstown Fire Chief Chip Hamblin. No one on the ground was injured.

The pilot had been on a training run at a Fort Drum gunnery range. Maj. Karen Platt, a spokeswoman for the 104th Fighter Wing of the Massachusetts Air Guard, said the pilot has served in the Westfield, Mass.-based unit for eight years.  "Everything happened pretty quickly. There was one radio call and then a couple
of minutes later the plane was on the ground,'' said Col. Dan Swift, wing commander.

The jet, first built in 1976, was the first Air Force plane designed specifically for close air support of ground troops.  Fort Drum, in nearby Watertown, sent two Blackhawk helicopters and an air ambulance to the scene. The pilot was rescued by one of the helicopter crews, Murphy said.