- 5 weeks ago
Air Crash Investigation Series S21E07 Mission Disaster
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TVTranscript
00:00A military KC-135 is on a dangerous refueling assignment over a war zone in the Middle East.
00:08Zero-fives level.
00:10They told us that 15% of us could possibly get shot down.
00:14What the?
00:15When suddenly the mission goes wrong.
00:18No good, we're losing her.
00:21We're going 110 degrees of bank in both directions.
00:23What the heck is happening?
00:25It's beyond the capability of the airplane to do that.
00:27Go get the parachutes and helmets.
00:29Roger.
00:30It became apparent pretty quickly that we weren't going to be able to complete our mission.
00:33The question is why.
00:36Mayday, mayday, mayday. This is wheel zero-five.
00:39Investigators must quickly determine if it was a mechanical failure.
00:42So this control cable snapped.
00:45Or enemy fire.
00:46Was this intentional?
00:48It's very critical to the entire operation to really figure out what happened.
00:56Mayday, mayday.
00:57It's late afternoon at King Abdulaziz airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
01:27Dozens of U.S. Air Force KC-135 aircraft prepare for late-night missions during the Gulf War.
01:34Today, more than 90 large tanker jets are preparing to refuel combat missions over Iraq and Kuwait.
01:4390 knots, I'll hand it over to you.
01:47Roger.
01:48Major Kevin Sweeney and the crew of U.S. Air Force Flight Whale-05 review the final details of their mission.
01:58Guard switches.
02:01He's the commander.
02:03Flight start.
02:04Sweeney has over 20 years of Air Force flying experience.
02:08It's his job to know the mission and his plane.
02:11But the aircraft commander is just like the captain.
02:15If you haven't made any tough decisions, it's your responsibility, although it's very important to take input from the rest of your crew members and listen to them.
02:22Set take-off thrust at 1.82 EPR.
02:33EPR set for take-off.
02:3590 knots.
02:43My airplane.
02:45Jay Salanders is Sweeney's trusted co-pilot.
02:48The aircraft commander is always responsible for the airplane, so you can't trade that.
02:56But specific duties we would trade back and forth.
03:02At 5.25 p.m., Whale-05 lifts off from Jeddah.
03:14Coalition forces are two weeks into Operation Desert Storm.
03:18One of the largest bombing campaigns in aviation history.
03:24Hundreds of daily bombing runs drive Saddam Hussein's invading Iraqi army out of Kuwait.
03:30The size of the American air power contribution, if you will, in Desert Storm just can't be overstated.
03:39It was quite astounding.
03:43Sweeney and his crew are flying a Boeing KC-135 strato tanker.
03:48The aircraft is similar to Boeing's commercial 707, but is specially designed for mid-air refueling.
03:55It really began the jet era, and it is a great airplane.
04:01It's true, it's fast, it's strong.
04:04It's one of Boeing's best products.
04:05And once you become accustomed to a few of its idiosyncrasies, sweet airplane to fly.
04:11We'll take you a long way and bring you home.
04:13Steve, are you going to transfer from the center tank?
04:20Affirmative.
04:21Two units of trim should keep us within the limits.
04:24Senior Master Sergeant Steve Stuckey is the boom operator.
04:29He's critical to the refueling operation.
04:31During refueling, he guides the fuel boom to the receiving plane.
04:39Once he is within three to five feet of the boom from the receptacle,
04:45I'll guide that boom into the receptacle.
04:49Then we can transfer fuel from the boom into his airplane.
04:51The amount of fuel that you can carry, whether in a bomber or a fighter,
04:59becomes critical in terms of being able to get to the place that you need to go and bring them back.
05:04There simply isn't any other substitute for air refueling.
05:11Tonight's mission takes them along a tanker corridor,
05:14an aerial highway for tanker crews heading north from Jeddah.
05:18When they reach waypoint Rita, they'll turn east,
05:23before making their final turn to the rendezvous point
05:26less than 180 miles from combat zones near the Kuwaiti border.
05:33Transition altitude.
05:35Set altimeter, 2992.
05:39Navigator Greg Mermis is in charge of keeping the mission safely on course.
05:44We are primarily responsible for running the rendezvous,
05:47joining up with the other aircraft to complete the refueling.
05:51I knew that Greg was going to do everything to put us in the right position at the right time.
05:57Tonight, they'll be refueling an AWACS plane,
06:00a radar surveillance and control unit,
06:03a prime target for enemy fire.
06:05I don't think any of us had any idea what to really expect.
06:11You know, they were estimating that 10% of the air refueling fleet
06:14was going to probably be shot down.
06:16So it was a little bit nerve-wracking.
06:18The crew faces Iraqi surface-to-air missiles
06:23and more than 700 enemy aircraft,
06:27including the dreaded Russian MiG-25.
06:30We had F-15s up there, F-16s,
06:32and their primary mission was air-to-air,
06:35looking for enemy airplanes to come
06:37and possibly try to attack an American airplane.
06:39To be flying any sort of an airplane in a war zone is surreal.
06:47I don't care how much you prepared for it.
06:50The ability to think in a volatile environment
06:52and to stay very calm
06:54is absolutely a requirement of the job.
06:58Zero-five's level.
07:02Whale's zero-five reaches cruising altitude.
07:05As they get closer to enemy territory,
07:10the pilots reduce radio contacts to avoid detection.
07:16The only other plane in sight
07:18is another American KC-135
07:20flying ahead in the same flight corridor.
07:25Heading 088.
07:29Altitude hold on.
07:31Altitude hold check.
07:32The crew will keep this course for 45 minutes
07:38until they rendezvous with the AWACS plane.
07:42That was our time to maybe relax a little bit.
07:45Nothing really kind of happening
07:46except cruising at that point.
07:48So I always, you know,
07:50used to take the opportunity
07:51to go ahead and make my dinner.
07:55Stuckey reviews his mission brief,
07:57which involves delivering 125,000 pounds of fuel.
08:02There's times when desert air is very stable
08:06and it's like you're flying on glass.
08:09But while I'm working on the paperwork,
08:12I felt a little bounce.
08:17Solanders feels an abnormal movement in the yoke.
08:20The autopilot was on,
08:23but I saw the yoke deflect about 30, 35 degrees to the left
08:27and it was shaking just a little bit,
08:29which is very odd.
08:31And just about the time I put my hands on the yoke,
08:34thinking I was going to punch the autopilot off,
08:36it came back to neutral.
08:39Well, it's some anomaly.
08:41Moments later...
08:42What the...
08:43Things go very wrong.
08:54I got it.
08:55It takes just a second
08:57for the plane to roll 110 degrees to the left.
09:01What the heck is happening?
09:03The first thing to think about is fly the jet.
09:06The second thing is what the devil just happened.
09:11We really had no idea
09:12what was going on to the aircraft.
09:15I thought perhaps a missile had hit us.
09:19Did we get hit?
09:20Because it was violent.
09:22I can't tell.
09:23I'd been flying for probably 10 years at that point
09:26and been on a lot of missions,
09:28but never experienced anything like that.
09:30The crew can't tell
09:34if there's some kind of malfunction
09:36or if they're under attack.
09:39We're going to lose her.
09:42We've got a better level.
09:44Just as it seems the plane
09:45is in an unrecoverable left bank,
09:48it snaps hard to the right.
09:50The airplane literally flipped.
09:53This is clearly unusual.
09:55It's beyond the capability of the airplane to do that.
09:58I mean, we're just totally out of control
10:00we were going 110 degrees of bank in both directions.
10:04In the galley, Stuckey is in trouble.
10:07I didn't know what was going on.
10:09It seemed like I would get to my feet
10:11and then I'd fall down again.
10:12It wasn't good.
10:15There's too much stress.
10:17The airplane is very resilient,
10:20but it isn't resilient enough
10:21to overcome the stresses that would be put on it
10:24if you rolled it in the wrong direction
10:25and tried to get out of a high-speed dive.
10:28If the aircraft banks much further,
10:31it will be impossible to recover.
10:34If we didn't get this under control
10:35and out of these wild gyrations very quickly,
10:39this airplane was going to come apart.
10:41And then we're just history.
10:42The pilots of Whale 05 are facing a crisis
10:50over the Saudi Arabian desert.
10:55The plane is rolling violently.
10:58It's no good.
10:59It's no good.
11:00I have got to focus on what I'm doing.
11:04I don't have any time for any extraneous thinking.
11:08Just when all seems lost,
11:10Major Sweeney plays a hunch.
11:13Speedbrake!
11:16Speedbrakes are devices on airplane wings
11:18designed to increase drag during descent and landing.
11:23Sweeney deploys the speedbrakes on both wings,
11:26hoping it will level the airplane.
11:28What happens is when the speedbrakes come out,
11:33it gives you more roll capability
11:35that is manually at your command
11:37and less capability for the airplane
11:39to go off and do something on its own aerodynamically.
11:44It's a procedure Sweeney remembers from his training.
11:49It works.
11:50I remember leveling out.
11:53It's just a maze that the airplane was still flying.
11:56And, you know, everybody's still there.
11:59Incredibly, the pilots have managed to level the plane.
12:03But they're not out of trouble yet.
12:05All right.
12:06I have lateral control, but we're losing altitude.
12:12We've got firelights on engines one and two.
12:15The pilots discover a problem with the two left engines.
12:19Jay and I looked at the engine instruments,
12:21and they are all over the place.
12:24These engine instruments make no sense.
12:26Both engines on the left wing have firelights on,
12:30and why that would happen to both of them at the same time
12:32is also going through your head.
12:34The plane is fully loaded with fuel.
12:38Steve, how about are the fires on engines one and two?
12:41Checking.
12:43If there's a fire in the engines,
12:45it could lead to disaster.
12:49Oh, my God.
12:53The only thing I could see was torn sheet metal
12:55on the wing where the engines were
12:58and fuel being vented over at the top of the wing.
13:02They're not on fire.
13:04They're gone.
13:06No fire?
13:08Affirmative.
13:09No fire.
13:10The engines are gone.
13:15Roger.
13:17There was a moment
13:18where that sentence didn't make a lot of sense to us.
13:23Wait a minute.
13:24They're gone.
13:26It takes just a moment for your mind to catch up to that,
13:29because now you've got
13:30really important pieces of the airplane not there.
13:34Even with no fire,
13:37the crew faces another urgent problem.
13:41We really got to get some fuel off here.
13:43Let's start dumping.
13:44Jake, you fly.
13:46Don't fight it.
13:48I have the aircraft.
13:49The two remaining engines
13:52can't provide enough power
13:53to keep the heavy aircraft airborne.
13:57We had no time to relax,
13:59but I knew that we were in serious trouble,
14:01and we had to come up with a lot of different procedures
14:03to keep us in the air.
14:05The fuel dump checklist
14:16is one of many emergency procedures
14:18embedded in Sweeney's brain.
14:22He conducts it from memory.
14:26Sweeney starts shedding fuel.
14:29We had to get lighter
14:30so this baby would start to fly.
14:32Jay and I could kind of start to feel
14:35at 16,000 feet
14:37like she could start flying again.
14:43Okay.
14:45I got the airplane.
14:49Holding steady at 16,000.
14:51By dumping 50 tons of fuel,
14:54Sweeney has succeeded in stopping their descent.
14:58Good.
14:59Good.
15:00Healthy fuel dump.
15:02Even though the plane
15:04is maintaining its altitude,
15:06there's no guarantee
15:07it can make a safe landing.
15:09Go get the parachutes and helmets.
15:12If anything else goes wrong,
15:14we'll need to bail.
15:16Roger.
15:18Ditching over the desert at night
15:21is a terrifying option.
15:23But there may be no choice.
15:25No air crew wants to bail out,
15:30but I've got to get my crew back safely.
15:32That's my job,
15:33is to get my air crew back safely.
15:36The final methodology
15:38is to get everybody to jump out,
15:40but you may lose a crew member or two
15:41just in that process.
15:42So this is not a decision
15:44to be taken lightly.
15:45Greg, you get on the radio with AWACS.
15:52Call in the Mayday.
15:53Roger.
15:54Looking for help,
15:56the crew contacts their rendezvous aircraft
15:58to advise them of the situation.
16:01It became apparent pretty quickly
16:02that we weren't going to be able
16:03to complete our mission.
16:05Mayday, mayday, mayday.
16:06This is Whale 05.
16:08We've had an in-flight upset
16:09and number one and two engines
16:10have departed the aircraft.
16:11I say again,
16:15mayday, mayday, mayday.
16:19There's no response.
16:22It's no good.
16:23I think our high-frequency radio is down.
16:26It should have worked,
16:27but it didn't.
16:28We couldn't reach anybody.
16:31Alone, with no radio contact,
16:33the crew will have to find
16:35their own way back to Jeddah.
16:37We like our radios,
16:39especially when something goes wrong.
16:41But they're not going to provide
16:43necessarily a hook
16:44to come out of the sky
16:45and save you.
16:46You've got to do that for yourself,
16:47including getting back
16:48to an airfield.
16:51Greg, are your nav instruments working?
16:54Yes.
16:55INS is functional.
16:56Radar is still up.
16:58Well, give me a heading back to Jeddah.
17:022-4-0?
17:0455 minutes.
17:04That's a long time to fly.
17:07Copy.
17:08Jay, take us to 2-4-0.
17:10The crew relies on the navigator's skills
17:13to find a safe route back.
17:16It was just under an hour
17:17to get back to Jeddah.
17:19It just seemed like an awfully long time
17:21to be in an airplane
17:22that you were very unsure of.
17:25Your airplane.
17:26My airplane.
17:28With great effort,
17:29Sweeney and Salander's wrestle
17:31to keep the plane on course to Jeddah.
17:34Without the weight and drag
17:36of the left engines,
17:37the plane wants to bank right.
17:40The ailerons and elevators
17:42in a KC-135 are not hydraulic.
17:44And so I have to fight her back
17:45to keep those wings level.
17:49But even if they make it back,
17:51there's no guarantee
17:52they can land the plane.
17:55We have to do a controllability check.
17:59The crew must test
18:00their flaps and ailerons.
18:02Going back to idle.
18:03The flight controls
18:05used to stabilize
18:06the plane on landing.
18:08A big airplane inherently
18:10has an ability to be landed
18:11if you can keep it under control.
18:14So the question is,
18:15are we safe to go ahead
18:17and try to land this airplane
18:18with what we've got?
18:21If we're going to do
18:22a controllability check
18:23and Jay and I determine
18:25that she's not flyable,
18:27we're going to have to bail out.
18:29All right, Jay,
18:34I want you to slowly
18:35bring them down.
18:37Roger that.
18:38Flying a severely damaged plane
18:41near enemy territory,
18:43the crew of Whale-05
18:44carefully check
18:46that the control surfaces
18:47on their plane
18:48are safe for landing.
18:50There's a moment
18:51right before you begin
18:52the check
18:52that you don't obviously know
18:54exactly what's going to happen.
18:55If the flaps are damaged,
18:58Flaps 10.
18:58it could cause an imbalance
19:00and make the plane
19:01impossible to control.
19:03We didn't know
19:04if the flaps would come
19:05down symmetrically.
19:06We didn't know
19:06if they'd come down at all.
19:08Nice and easy.
19:11We're going to start
19:12milking the flaps down
19:13and we see if we can
19:14maintain control
19:15of the airplane.
19:16Jay is an integral part of this,
19:17so he's going to slide
19:18the flaps down
19:19to like 30 degrees
19:20and be watching me
19:21and watching everything.
19:23Flaps 30.
19:25I'm going to do
19:26a small turn left
19:27and right.
19:29If I start to lose it,
19:30I'll say up
19:31and you slam the back up.
19:36You're a test pilot
19:37at this particular point
19:38in time
19:39and you don't want
19:40to be testing
19:41on the actual approach
19:42because there can be
19:43no recovery
19:44if you've made
19:45the wrong move.
19:51You know,
19:52I can land this airplane.
19:55Okay, bring the flaps
19:58back up to zero.
20:00We're going to go home.
20:02It was a big deal
20:03because at that point
20:04we thought we could
20:06actually land the airplane.
20:08The pilots now know
20:10they can slow down
20:11the plane enough
20:12to get it on the ground,
20:13but they need to get it
20:15to a runway first.
20:17130 miles to Jeddah.
20:18We might be in range now.
20:19Jeddah Whale 05,
20:23how copy on Victor?
20:26They attempt to contact
20:27the controller
20:28for assistance.
20:29Whale 05, Jeddah.
20:31I'm clear.
20:32Go ahead.
20:33Ah, yes, sir.
20:35This is Whale 05,
20:37inbound to Jeddah.
20:39Declaring an emergency.
20:41Engines one and two
20:42are out.
20:44Whale 05,
20:45see souls on board
20:46and fuel remaining.
20:48We have four souls on board.
20:51Currently 55,000 pounds of gas.
20:54Roger.
20:55We are preparing the airport
20:56for your arrival now.
20:5805, thank you, sir.
20:59With the airport on standby,
21:03the crew begins
21:04its landing preparations.
21:07Let's look at two engines
21:08and operative landing.
21:11One of the things
21:12that I always loved
21:13about Air Force flying
21:14was our operations manual
21:16covered literally everything.
21:18Every procedure
21:19that you could possibly think of
21:20in an emergency
21:21and including, in this case,
21:22the loss of two engines
21:23on the airplane.
21:25One step will pose
21:27a big challenge.
21:29Allow time
21:30for manual landing gear extension.
21:32When you lose
21:33two engines like that,
21:34it affects
21:34a lot of the hydraulics as well.
21:37We lost the left side hydraulics,
21:39which means the gear
21:40have to be lowered manually.
21:43Without hydraulic power
21:44to lower the landing gear,
21:46Stuckey will have to do it manually.
21:48It's a complicated task.
21:51It's a real emergency situation,
21:53and you have to do
21:55each step in the checklist right.
21:57All right, we need to lower
21:59by final descent.
22:01Can you do it?
22:03Yes, sir.
22:03I'll get him down.
22:05It's a procedure
22:06he's only done in training.
22:09I'm allowing him to do
22:10a stellar job
22:10of getting the landing gear down.
22:11This is a tight mission.
22:14One more thing.
22:16Sweeney has an important realization.
22:19We've got to pull the anti-skid
22:20or we lose our brake pressure.
22:23Steve, it should be
22:23on the TR bus 2 behind you.
22:27There's only enough
22:28hydraulic pressure left
22:29to apply the brakes once.
22:32Sweeney decides to disengage
22:33the anti-skid braking system.
22:35The anti-skid system,
22:37which is similar to
22:38the automatic braking system
22:40on today's Martyr and cars,
22:42that don't allow you
22:43to lock up the brakes.
22:44They'll release, brake,
22:45release, and brake,
22:46and that's what
22:47that anti-skid system is.
22:50Got the anti-skid.
22:51Confirmed.
22:53Confirmed.
22:56Disengaging the system
22:57will ensure that
22:58the remaining hydraulic pressure
23:00It's fault.
23:01is used to keep
23:02the brakes applied.
23:03If I pull that circuit breaker
23:05and just put the brakes
23:06on once and hold them,
23:08I'm going to have
23:09full braking power.
23:11Without the anti-skid,
23:12you're going to blow
23:13a few tires,
23:14but that's not going
23:15to take you off the runway,
23:16and it is going to be
23:17a safe methodology
23:18of bringing this airplane
23:20back to the surface.
23:2250 miles.
23:24The crew is ready
23:26to begin the final approach.
23:28Steve, get into position.
23:30Roger.
23:33The longer they struggle
23:39with the controls,
23:40the more tired
23:41the pilots become.
23:43Jay, it's your turn.
23:45I'll take comms.
23:47Okay, I got the airplane.
23:49Your airplane.
23:51Sweeney takes one last break
23:53to save his strength
23:54for landing.
23:57Jetta, approach.
23:58Whale 05.
24:00Whale 05.
24:01Go ahead, sir.
24:02Jetta, approach 05.
24:04We have the city in sight.
24:05We're going to fly in
24:06south of your field
24:07from the east here
24:07and come into runway
24:093-4 left.
24:11No other traffic
24:11from the airport
24:12at this time.
24:14It's all yours.
24:16All righty.
24:16We'll use it
24:17and we'll get out
24:17of your way shortly.
24:18Sweeney briefs the team
24:21on his plan
24:22for the approach.
24:23Hey, we're going to start
24:24high and fast.
24:25210 knots.
24:27Jay, you start
24:28just slowly.
24:30Don't drop the flaps
24:31unless everything's
24:31looking good.
24:33Any questions?
24:36No questions.
24:38Okay, Steve.
24:38Drop the nose gear.
24:40Extend your nose gear.
24:43Whale 05
24:44is less than
24:45eight minutes
24:45from landing.
24:46Nose gear down
24:49and locked.
24:51Roger is showing down.
24:54Seating to right
24:54and left main gear.
24:56Throughout the flight
24:57it seemed like
24:58we just continually
24:59had these dragons
25:00come over the hill
25:01and the last one
25:02is this landing gear.
25:04Once we put
25:05the landing gear down
25:06we're going down.
25:07We're committed to land.
25:08We don't get a go run
25:09because we're not going
25:10to have enough thrust
25:10on two engines.
25:12With all three
25:13landing gear down
25:15the crew of
25:16Whale 05
25:17now has no option
25:18but to try
25:19landing the
25:20severely damaged plane.
25:22Six miles
25:22speed 210
25:24flaps 20
25:25minutes from
25:27touching down
25:28all their skill
25:29and planning
25:30is about to be tested.
25:33I mean it was
25:33very important
25:34that each one of us
25:35clearly knew
25:36what we're going to do.
25:37We're going to have
25:38one shot at it.
25:39In the months
25:44runway in sight
25:46with two engines
25:48missing
25:48Whale 05
25:50is about to attempt
25:51a landing
25:51at King Abdulaziz
25:53airport
25:53runway in sight
25:55it was one of his
25:57best approaches
25:58probably ever
25:59he was on centerline
26:01he was exactly
26:01on glide slope
26:02100 feet
26:05coming back
26:06to idle
26:07flaps 50
26:10flaps 50
26:15looking real good
26:1750
26:2040
26:2130
26:2320
26:24reverse thrust
26:31interlock
26:31Major Sweeney
26:33begins to deploy
26:34the reverse thrust
26:35on the inboard
26:36right engine
26:37to help slow
26:37the plane
26:38but it has
26:40an unintended
26:41outcome
26:42as soon as he did
26:44that the left wing
26:44started to rise
26:45the powerless
26:47left wing
26:48is lifting
26:48the right wing
26:49could scrape
26:50the runway
26:51and cause the plane
26:52to cartwheel
26:52nothing out
26:55nothing out
26:56and I remember
26:57thinking I'm not
26:58going to lose it now
26:58and slammed it down
26:59without the braking
27:02action from full
27:03reverse thrust
27:04the plane is quickly
27:05running out of runway
27:06he immediately
27:08put it back down
27:09and we relied
27:10on the brakes
27:11brakes
27:12Jay was going to
27:15put his brakes
27:15on too
27:16and we were going
27:16to blow a couple
27:17of tires
27:18the crew
27:29of whale 05
27:31is safely
27:31on the ground
27:32we did it
27:36I think we blew
27:38three or four tires
27:39before it was over
27:40because of the lack
27:41of anti-skid
27:41but extraordinary job
27:43really under the
27:43circumstances
27:44yeah in a sense
27:47that oh my god
27:48we managed to get
27:49back here
27:50and live through this
27:51who would have
27:52thought that
27:52there was that
27:54one moment
27:55when you actually
27:55stop moving
27:56and feel like
27:57we've made it
27:58and I think
27:59we enjoyed that
28:00for maybe a second
28:01and then got out
28:02of the airplane
28:02I remember
28:15looking back
28:16at the wing
28:16and oof
28:18that was just
28:20a shock
28:20I mean
28:21they're gone
28:22and there's big
28:23holes in the wing
28:24and parts
28:25hanging out
28:25and wow
28:28within a day
28:31the US Air Force
28:32launches an investigation
28:33Lieutenant Colonel
28:36Ike Stokes
28:37is the lead
28:37investigator
28:38the fleet
28:41of KC-135s
28:42is indispensable
28:43to the war effort
28:44did the plane
28:47malfunction
28:47did it come
28:50under enemy fire
28:51there was truly
28:53more external pressure
28:54than I've experienced
28:55in the past
28:56because
28:57they're flying
28:5890 to 100
28:59missions
29:00out of Jeddah
29:01on a daily basis
29:03so it's very
29:05critical
29:05to the entire
29:06operation
29:07of the war
29:08to really figure
29:09out what happened
29:10hard to believe
29:16both engines
29:17are gone
29:17you're gathering
29:20the information
29:21you're analyzing
29:23the information
29:23it was just
29:25a wonderment
29:26to see
29:27something like this
29:28Stokes
29:30Stokes
29:30checks for
29:31scorch marks
29:32and residue
29:32from explosives
29:33one thing
29:36investigators
29:36always consider
29:37was this
29:39intentional
29:40did someone
29:41shoot at the
29:42plane
29:42if this was
29:45an enemy
29:45missile
29:46it could mean
29:47the threat
29:47from Iraq
29:48is escalating
29:49putting the
29:49entire refueling
29:51fleet
29:51and the outcome
29:52of the war
29:53at risk
29:54let's face it
29:56we're fighting
29:56a war
29:57we have
29:58a critical
29:58asset
29:59these are
30:00combat air
30:01refueling
30:01missions
30:02so if
30:02the fighters
30:03and bombers
30:04do not get
30:05the fuel
30:06they can't
30:07complete the
30:07mission
30:07but evidence
30:09of enemy fire
30:10is not
30:11what Stokes
30:12finds
30:12there's no
30:13scorch marks
30:14or
30:14explosive residue
30:16there's no
30:19evidence
30:19of an enemy
30:20attack
30:20these engines
30:23were ripped
30:24right off
30:24Stokes wonders
30:27what kind
30:27of force
30:28tore off
30:29the plane's
30:29left engines
30:30one of the
30:31things that
30:32we really
30:32wanted to
30:33do
30:34was to
30:35find the
30:35engines
30:36but at
30:37the time
30:38we had
30:38no idea
30:40as to
30:41where to
30:41exactly
30:42look
30:42we're gonna
30:43need those
30:44missing
30:44engines
30:44although
30:46the navigator
30:47did record
30:48where the
30:49mishap
30:49occurred
30:50those engines
30:51could be
30:51spread over
30:52quite an
30:53area of
30:54desert
30:54fortunately
31:01a group
31:02of Bedouins
31:03discovered
31:04the engines
31:04and reported
31:05the find
31:06they said
31:08what do you
31:09want us
31:09to do
31:09with them
31:10and we
31:11immediately
31:11said
31:11get a
31:12truck
31:12flatbed
31:13and a
31:14crane
31:14and go
31:14out to
31:15the desert
31:15and let's
31:16get the
31:16engines
31:17recovered
31:17accident
31:19investigation
31:20can do
31:20incredible
31:21things
31:22by piecing
31:23together
31:23from very
31:24small bits
31:24of evidence
31:25what happened
31:26but it's so
31:27much easier
31:28when you can
31:28actually go out
31:29and get
31:29these things
31:30and thank
31:30goodness
31:31they were
31:31able to
31:31find them
31:32in the
31:32desert
31:32nice work
31:35a big thing
31:38that helped
31:38us out
31:38in the
31:39investigation
31:39was getting
31:41the engines
31:41back to
31:42the location
31:42stokes
31:44notices
31:45something
31:45unusual
31:46they find
31:50it like
31:50this
31:50one of
31:52the thrust
31:53reversers
31:53is partially
31:54deployed
31:55of course
31:56we need
31:56to explain
31:57or understand
31:58why that
31:59was open
31:59thrust
32:01reversers
32:02change
32:02the direction
32:03of exhaust
32:04air
32:04flowing
32:04from the
32:05back
32:05of the
32:05engine
32:05to slow
32:06the plane
32:07down
32:07the idea
32:10that the
32:10thrust
32:11reverser
32:11could come
32:12open
32:13in flight
32:13at
32:14cruise
32:14speed
32:15of over
32:1580%
32:16of the
32:16speed
32:16of sound
32:17is a
32:17very important
32:18consideration
32:18because that
32:19could create
32:20an upset
32:20situation
32:21did the
32:24thrust reverser
32:24deploy mid
32:25flight
32:26and cause
32:26the engines
32:27to rip
32:27off the
32:28plane
32:28this
32:30control
32:30cable
32:31snapped
32:31but in
32:34looking at
32:34it
32:35you could
32:35see how
32:36the cables
32:37that operated
32:38the thrust
32:38reverser
32:39ripped out
32:40as the
32:40engine
32:41was departing
32:42from the
32:42airplane
32:43there's
32:44nothing wrong
32:44with the
32:44engines
32:45deployment
32:47of the
32:47thrust reversers
32:48didn't
32:49rip the
32:50engines
32:50off the
32:50plane
32:51see what
32:52the crew
32:52has to
32:52say
32:53investigator
32:59ike stokes
33:00wonders if
33:01the crew
33:01can shed
33:02some light
33:02on why
33:03a kc-135
33:04lost two
33:05engines
33:05mid-flight
33:06okay
33:07okay
33:07so tell
33:10me what
33:11happened
33:11when the
33:11event
33:11started
33:12knowing
33:13in this
33:14case
33:15that we
33:15had a
33:16crew
33:16that
33:16survived
33:17the
33:17mishap
33:18it was
33:19invaluable
33:19because you
33:21really do
33:21need
33:22the initial
33:22inputs
33:23of what
33:24those
33:25crew members
33:25experienced
33:26to put
33:26the whole
33:26story
33:27together
33:27well
33:29the
33:30yoke
33:30moved
33:30for a
33:31second
33:31then
33:31it
33:31corrected
33:32itself
33:32and then
33:34out of
33:35nowhere
33:35it
33:35cranked
33:36itself
33:36left
33:36now
33:38what
33:38point
33:39in the
33:39flight
33:39was
33:39this
33:40shortly
33:41after
33:42reaching
33:42cruising
33:42altitude
33:43another
33:44kc-135
33:45passed
33:46us
33:46wait
33:48so
33:48another
33:48plane
33:49was
33:49passing
33:49you
33:49it
33:51was
33:51on
33:51the
33:51same
33:51flight
33:52path
33:52but
33:52it
33:53had
33:53further
33:53to
33:53go
33:54so
33:54we
33:55let
33:55it
33:55pass
33:55through
33:56it
33:58felt
33:58like
33:59we
33:59had
33:59heavy
33:59turbulence
34:00it's
34:02a
34:02significant
34:03clue
34:04how
34:05far
34:05away
34:06was
34:06the
34:06other
34:06aircraft
34:07when
34:07it
34:07passed
34:07your
34:07plane
34:08well
34:09I'd
34:09say
34:09a
34:10quarter
34:10of a
34:11mile
34:11half
34:11a
34:11mile
34:12to
34:12the
34:12left
34:12of
34:12us
34:12heavy
34:16aircraft
34:17leave
34:17powerful
34:18wake
34:18turbulence
34:18behind
34:19them
34:19when
34:19they
34:20fly
34:20Stokes
34:22wonders
34:22if
34:23Sweeney's
34:23plane
34:23was
34:24close
34:24enough
34:24to
34:25get
34:25caught
34:25in the
34:25other
34:26KC-135's
34:27wake
34:28we're
34:29talking
34:29about
34:30very
34:30strong
34:31circular
34:32wind
34:32coming
34:33off
34:34of
34:34this
34:34airplane
34:35wing
34:35and
34:36it
34:36can
34:37cause
34:37the
34:37upset
34:38of
34:38another
34:38airplane
34:39regardless
34:40of its
34:40size
34:41if it
34:41hits
34:41it
34:41just
34:42right
34:42and
34:44how
34:44far
34:45away
34:45was
34:45the
34:45other
34:45plane
34:46when
34:46the
34:46turbulence
34:46started
34:47well
34:48they
34:48were
34:48at
34:49least
34:49two
34:49miles
34:50ahead
34:50of
34:50us
34:50if
34:52this
34:52was
34:53indeed
34:53wake
34:53turbulence
34:54investigators
34:55wonder
34:55why
34:56only
34:56the
34:56left
34:57engines
34:57were
34:57affected
34:58thank you
35:00major
35:00thank you
35:02sir
35:02an
35:08examination
35:08of the
35:08right
35:09engines
35:09might help
35:10to reveal
35:11what
35:11happened
35:11right
35:14engine
35:14bolts
35:15each
35:17kc-135
35:18engine
35:19is
35:19attached
35:19to
35:19the
35:20wing
35:20with
35:20three
35:20large
35:21bolts
35:21these
35:24four
35:25are
35:25completely
35:26severed
35:27stokes
35:28discovers
35:28that
35:29two
35:29bolts
35:30on
35:30each
35:30right
35:31engine
35:31were
35:31sheared
35:32in
35:32half
35:32how
35:33did
35:33those
35:34engines
35:34stay
35:34attached
35:35they
35:36were
35:36one
35:37bolt
35:37away
35:38from
35:38actually
35:39losing
35:39the
35:40engines
35:41off
35:41of
35:41the
35:41right
35:42wing
35:42which
35:42would
35:42have
35:43made
35:43them
35:43nothing
35:43more
35:44than
35:44high
35:44speed
35:44glider
35:51with
35:51wake
35:51turbulence
35:52looking
35:52more
35:52and
35:52more
35:53a
35:53likely
35:53cause
35:54well
35:55zero
35:55five
35:56is at
35:5725,000
35:58feet
35:59investigators
36:01compile
36:01the critical
36:02data
36:02needed
36:03to calculate
36:04the forces
36:04that
36:05whale
36:05zero
36:05five
36:06may
36:06have
36:06passed
36:07through
36:07whale
36:08two
36:08zero
36:09is at
36:0925,500
36:11feet
36:11that's
36:16everything
36:16but
36:18they
36:18need
36:19help
36:19from
36:19the
36:19plane's
36:20manufacturer
36:21to
36:21analyze
36:21the
36:22data
36:22let's
36:23talk
36:23to
36:24Boeing
36:24understanding
36:25how the
36:26two
36:26airplanes
36:27affected
36:27their
36:27separation
36:28gave
36:29give us
36:29the data
36:30necessary
36:30to talk
36:31with the
36:32engineers
36:33at Boeing
36:34wow the
36:44left wing
36:45g-forces
36:46were
36:482.88
36:51that exceeded
36:53the structural
36:54capability
36:55of the
36:55pylons
36:56and so
36:57they
36:57separated
36:57from
36:58the
36:58airplane
36:58and the
37:00right wing
37:012.61
37:03let's see
37:06what that
37:06looks like
37:07the
37:14extreme
37:15lateral
37:15g-forces
37:16on the
37:16left side
37:17of the
37:17plane
37:17were
37:18enough
37:18to
37:18tear
37:19the
37:19left
37:19engines
37:19off
37:20but
37:22not
37:22quite
37:22strong
37:23enough
37:23to
37:23rip
37:23them
37:23off
37:24the
37:24right
37:24side
37:240.14
37:30more
37:30g's
37:30on the
37:31right
37:31side
37:31this
37:33plane
37:34would
37:34have
37:34been
37:34nothing
37:34more
37:34but
37:35a
37:35massive
37:35glider
37:36they
37:38were
37:38very
37:39very
37:39close
37:39to
37:39coming
37:40off
37:40the
37:40g-force
37:41loading
37:41was
37:42just
37:42not
37:42enough
37:43to
37:43sling
37:44them
37:44off
37:44of
37:44the
37:44airplane
37:45it
37:46was
37:46said
37:46that
37:47we
37:47had
37:47one
37:47more
37:47gyration
37:48and
37:49we
37:50might
37:50have
37:50been
37:50a
37:50high
37:50speed
37:50heavyweight
37:51glider
37:51but we
37:53made it
37:53this
37:56leaves
37:56investigators
37:57with one
37:58burning
37:58question
37:59these
38:00guys
38:00train
38:01for lead
38:02changes
38:02why
38:05did
38:06this
38:06mission
38:06go
38:06sideways
38:07US
38:13Air Force
38:13investigator
38:14Ike
38:14Stokes
38:15tries to
38:15understand
38:16how
38:16wake
38:16turbulence
38:17nearly
38:17destroyed
38:18a gigantic
38:19tanker
38:19aircraft
38:20separation
38:21between
38:21the two
38:21planes
38:22by the
38:22book
38:22that's
38:29it
38:30wind
38:33wind
38:33was
38:3385
38:34knots
38:34from
38:34the
38:34west
38:35the
38:37wind
38:37was
38:37blowing
38:37enough
38:38at
38:38altitude
38:39to
38:40push
38:40the
38:40wing
38:41tip
38:41vortices
38:41from
38:41the
38:42preceding
38:42airplane
38:43into
38:43the
38:43flight
38:44path
38:44of
38:45the
38:45mishap
38:46aircraft
38:46they
38:47accounted
38:48for
38:48everything
38:48they
38:50were
38:50foiled
38:51by the
38:51direction
38:51of
38:51the
38:51wind
38:52perfect
38:54storm
38:54but
38:56Stokes
38:56still
38:57doesn't
38:57know
38:57how
38:58this
38:58perfect
38:58storm
38:59ever
38:59got
39:00a
39:00chance
39:00to
39:00form
39:01when
39:03you're
39:04taking
39:04off
39:05between
39:0690
39:06to
39:06100
39:07airplanes
39:08on a
39:08daily
39:09basis
39:09the
39:10arrival
39:10and
39:10departure
39:11from
39:11the
39:11base
39:12is
39:12very
39:12critical
39:12and
39:14in
39:14this
39:14particular
39:15case
39:15the
39:16mishap
39:17aircraft
39:17was parked
39:18in such
39:18a way
39:19that it
39:19had to
39:19go
39:20first
39:20and
39:21be
39:21followed
39:21by
39:22the
39:22second
39:23airplane
39:23the
39:24one
39:24that
39:24had
39:24further
39:25to
39:25go
39:25the
39:27solution
39:28that
39:28they
39:28came
39:28up
39:28with
39:29was a
39:29perfectly
39:30responsible
39:30solution
39:31and that
39:31was
39:31we're
39:32going to
39:32take off
39:32individually
39:33and then
39:34you're going
39:35to pass
39:35me
39:35had the
39:38number two
39:39plane been
39:39parked to
39:40the left
39:41of the
39:41mishap
39:41airplane
39:42the
39:42mishap
39:42never would
39:43have
39:43occurred
39:43investigators
39:45finally understand
39:47what happened
39:48to whale
39:48zero five
39:49zero five's
39:51level
39:51on a
39:53on a
39:53on a
39:53wartime
39:53mission
39:53over the
39:54saudi
39:54arabian
39:55desert
39:55two
39:56kc
39:56135s
39:58switch
39:58position
39:59mid
39:59flight
39:59altitude
40:02hold
40:03on
40:03altitude
40:04hold
40:05check
40:05the
40:09wake
40:09turbulence
40:10generated
40:10by the
40:11passing
40:11plane
40:12is blown
40:12into the
40:13path
40:13of whale
40:14zero five
40:15it creates
40:17a tremendous
40:18force that
40:19flips the
40:19plane so
40:20violently
40:20g-forces
40:22rip both
40:23engines off
40:23the left
40:24wing
40:24often heard
40:28flying
40:28described as
40:29hours and
40:30hours of
40:31sheer
40:31boredom
40:31followed by
40:32moments of
40:33stark
40:33raving
40:34terror
40:34in this
40:35case the
40:36crew
40:36experienced
40:36that stark
40:37raving
40:37terror
40:38the
40:39oscillations
40:43almost push
40:43the right
40:44engines
40:44and the
40:45aircraft
40:45beyond the
40:46point of
40:47recovery
40:47speed
40:48break
40:49but with
40:50the quick
40:51thinking of
40:51a seasoned
40:52wartime
40:53commander
40:53the plane
40:54levels off
40:55coming back
40:58to level
40:58flight
40:58was a
40:59true feat
40:59of airmanship
41:00break
41:01are your
41:02nav instruments
41:02working
41:03yes
41:05ins is
41:05functional
41:06radar is
41:06still up
41:07give me
41:08a heading
41:08back to
41:09jetta
41:09the
41:11coordination
41:12of a
41:12well-trained
41:13crew
41:14don't get
41:14down and
41:15locked
41:15runway
41:16in sight
41:16brings
41:18whale zero
41:19five back
41:20home safely
41:21aircraft
41:22commander
41:22was an
41:23excellent
41:23airman
41:23but the
41:24fact is
41:25he had
41:25every
41:26brain
41:26in that
41:27airplane
41:27working
41:28in tandem
41:29with him
41:29side by
41:30side
41:30to make
41:31sure they
41:31didn't miss
41:31anything
41:32thanks
41:33i was very
41:36fortunate to fly
41:37one of the best
41:37crews in the air
41:38force in my
41:39humble opinion
41:40they did their
41:41job in a
41:43critical situation
41:44and it wasn't
41:46just me getting
41:46back to the
41:47airplane
41:47it was the
41:49team got
41:50back to the
41:50airplane
41:51we did it
41:52whether it's a
41:54refueling plane
41:55in wartime
41:56or a routine
41:57domestic flight
41:58in a 747
41:59the importance
42:01of teamwork
42:02can never be
42:03overstated
42:03why this crew
42:05succeeded
42:06is because they
42:07were thoroughly
42:08imbued with the
42:08idea that they
42:09had to talk to
42:10each other
42:10seamlessly
42:11and all of
42:12them put their
42:12minds to the
42:13task of what
42:14are the proper
42:14procedures
42:15what are we
42:16facing
42:17what do we
42:17need to do
42:18and that I
42:19think is still
42:20one of the
42:20many lessons
42:21that comes out
42:21of this
42:22Kevin and I
42:25have gone
42:25through this
42:26numerous times
42:27over barbecue
42:28and beer
42:28and tried to
42:30figure out
42:30is there
42:30anything we
42:31could have
42:31done better
42:32are there
42:33steps that
42:33we missed
42:34and we're
42:34pretty satisfied
42:35that as a
42:36crew we took
42:37the actions
42:38that needed
42:38to be taken
42:39when they
42:39needed to be
42:39taken and
42:40probably wouldn't
42:41change a thing
42:42the crew's
42:44handling of
42:45the crisis
42:46earned them
42:46each the
42:47distinguished
42:47flying cross
42:49for heroism
42:50or extraordinary
42:51achievement
42:52while participating
42:53in aerial flight
42:54it's like a
42:56purple heart
42:56almost you
42:56don't want it
42:57because you're
42:58in a situation
42:58you probably
42:59don't want to
42:59be in
42:59but we're
43:00very thankful
43:01very very
43:02happy with
43:03that
43:03the air force
43:06trains you
43:07that every
43:08day is not
43:09going to be
43:10a perfect
43:11day
43:12there's going
43:13to be a
43:14day that
43:14you're going
43:15to get
43:15in the bucket
43:16and when
43:17that day
43:17comes
43:18if you've
43:19done your
43:20homework
43:20you'll be
43:21good enough
43:22to make
43:22it
43:23and I
43:24think the
43:24air force
43:24does an
43:24outstanding
43:25job of
43:26this
43:26amazingly
43:28the same
43:29KC-135
43:30went on to
43:31fly for
43:32another 13
43:33years
43:34I do remember
43:35seeing the
43:35airplane sitting
43:36over by
43:36itself
43:37thinking
43:37that'll never
43:39fly again
43:40and as it
43:41turns out
43:41Boeing came
43:42out put a
43:42laser on it
43:43and said it
43:44was still
43:44straight
43:44it hadn't
43:45been bent
43:46it was
43:46repaired
43:46flown back
43:47from Jetta
43:48and flew a
43:49number of
43:49missions
43:49and it
43:50soldiered on
43:50for quite a
43:51while
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