thedrifter
04-24-07, 07:07 AM
April 24, 2007 - 12:00AM
Fighter drops fuel tank
JANNETTE PIPPIN
DAILY NEWS STAFF
MOREHEAD CITY - An external fuel tank fell from a military aircraft Monday morning and landed in a wooded area of Morehead City.
No one was injured in the incident, which involved a plane from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. The tank landed near the Blair Farm residential area.
A safety investigation is under way by the Air Force to determine the cause of the incident, according to a news release from Goldsboro-based Seymour Johnson.
An external fuel tank, pylon and an inert training missile separated from an F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 333rd Fighter Squadron at around 10:30 a.m. The jet was flying a routine mission approximately 10 miles southeast of Cherry Point, the news release said.
According to an Air Force fact sheet on the F-15E, an external conformal fuel tank holds weapons on short pylons and can carry 750 gallons of fuel. The F-15E also has an external 610-gallon drop tank. Emergency responders could not confirm what size tank fell from the plane.
The news that no injuries or damage were reported came as relief to St. Egbert's Catholic School teacher Mary Barber, who looked up into the sky during the morning recess and saw a large object falling through the air.
"I thought for sure it was a plane going down," Barber said.
Barber was one of a number of people who called in reports of a possible plane crash.
"I'm so glad there wasn't," she said. "We were so concerned someone could have been hurt or that it would hit something,"
According to the information from Seymour Johnson, the fighter plane's wingman noticed the separation immediately and local authorities were contacted.
The initial reports of a possible crash brought out emergency responders, including departments from Morehead City, Beaufort and Atlantic Beach, Highway Patrol, Carteret County Emergency Management and military personnel. A helicopter from N.C. Marine Patrol helped officers search the area by air.
Rescuers searched in the general area identified by callers and located the fuel tank a short time later. It was unknown how much fuel was in the tank.
Military officials were investigating to determine what happened, but there was no apparent public threat from the fuel tank, which sat in an out-of-the-way location, said Morehead City Police Maj. Richard Abell.
"Fortunately, it didn't hit anybody or anything," he said.
Authorities secured the scene to keep curious onlookers away and for a short time limited entrance to Blair Farm to residents and authorized personnel in order to keep out traffic from rubberneckers.
Local authorities turned the scene over to military officials Monday afternoon.
Contact Jannette Pippin at jpippin@freedomenc.com or (252) 808-2275.
Ellie
Fighter drops fuel tank
JANNETTE PIPPIN
DAILY NEWS STAFF
MOREHEAD CITY - An external fuel tank fell from a military aircraft Monday morning and landed in a wooded area of Morehead City.
No one was injured in the incident, which involved a plane from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. The tank landed near the Blair Farm residential area.
A safety investigation is under way by the Air Force to determine the cause of the incident, according to a news release from Goldsboro-based Seymour Johnson.
An external fuel tank, pylon and an inert training missile separated from an F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 333rd Fighter Squadron at around 10:30 a.m. The jet was flying a routine mission approximately 10 miles southeast of Cherry Point, the news release said.
According to an Air Force fact sheet on the F-15E, an external conformal fuel tank holds weapons on short pylons and can carry 750 gallons of fuel. The F-15E also has an external 610-gallon drop tank. Emergency responders could not confirm what size tank fell from the plane.
The news that no injuries or damage were reported came as relief to St. Egbert's Catholic School teacher Mary Barber, who looked up into the sky during the morning recess and saw a large object falling through the air.
"I thought for sure it was a plane going down," Barber said.
Barber was one of a number of people who called in reports of a possible plane crash.
"I'm so glad there wasn't," she said. "We were so concerned someone could have been hurt or that it would hit something,"
According to the information from Seymour Johnson, the fighter plane's wingman noticed the separation immediately and local authorities were contacted.
The initial reports of a possible crash brought out emergency responders, including departments from Morehead City, Beaufort and Atlantic Beach, Highway Patrol, Carteret County Emergency Management and military personnel. A helicopter from N.C. Marine Patrol helped officers search the area by air.
Rescuers searched in the general area identified by callers and located the fuel tank a short time later. It was unknown how much fuel was in the tank.
Military officials were investigating to determine what happened, but there was no apparent public threat from the fuel tank, which sat in an out-of-the-way location, said Morehead City Police Maj. Richard Abell.
"Fortunately, it didn't hit anybody or anything," he said.
Authorities secured the scene to keep curious onlookers away and for a short time limited entrance to Blair Farm to residents and authorized personnel in order to keep out traffic from rubberneckers.
Local authorities turned the scene over to military officials Monday afternoon.
Contact Jannette Pippin at jpippin@freedomenc.com or (252) 808-2275.
Ellie