New, few details. https://www.azfamily.com/news/aircr...cle_43419592-8a9e-11ec-b41d-6ba2a54e7500.html TFR in place around the site of the accident (https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_2_3358.html)
Luke is a fighter training base with a lot of F-16 and F-35 traffic. The article doesn't say what type of plane went down, but those are the most likely just by numbers in the air.
There's a TFR up to 10,000'. News item says "the area of Sun Valley Parkway and Canyon Springs Boulevard." Google Map doesn't show much ground traffic disruption in the area.
The TFR is rather confusing, since folks can see whatever it was on the ground anyway. Hopefully missed the densely populated area to the north.
Maybe it keeps the news choppers out of the area, which are a big hazard. Two collided in Phoenix in 2007, four fatalities. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_news_helicopter_collision
Glad to hear he's ok. I hadn't heard of ATAC before. So we are contracting out pilot training it seems.
ATAC is one of several companies that provide adversary aircraft and pilots for dissimilar combat training. Its been that way for years.
A Draken adversary F1 Mirage crashed near Nellis in May 2021. The pilot was killed. Draken stood down for four months to inspect the rest of their fleet for possible issues, but didn't find any. I wonder if there is a commonality between the two.
I didn't know ATAC was flying F1's. I know they fly F-21 Kfirs, which are sort of French, and Mirage-like. Is this confirmed to be them, or could it possibly have been another Draken F.1?
"John Rupp, director of foreign military sales for Airborne Tactical Advantage Co., confirmed it was one of his company’s jets that went down. 'The pilot is safe and doing well,' Rupp told The Associated Press." https://www.azfamily.com/news/fight...e-11ec-b41d-6ba2a54e7500.html?block_id=997196 According to Wikipedia ... The ATAC air fleet includes the following aircraft 11 Hawker Hunters 6 IAI F-21 Kfirs 1 Douglas A-4 Skyhawks 2 Aero L-39 Albatroses 63 Dassault Mirage F1s
Thanks! And now that I think about it, the fact of them buying a bazillion F1's recently rings a bell. I guess at least they have 62 left? Glad the pilot sounds to have made it out ok.
Looks like maybe some of might be just for parts... 26] Textron subsidiary Airborne Tactical Advantage Company in 2017 acquired 63 former French Air Force Mirage F1B, F1CT, and F1CR for dissimilar air combat training and aggressor squadron purposes for the US Air Force.[127][128] The intention is to have between 30 and 45 of them airworthy.
