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NASA Jet Makes Emergency Landing

By Andrew Bridges

Pasadena Bureau Chief

posted: 12:02 pm ET 26 July 2000 A NASA F-18A pilot made an emergency landing at Edwards Air Force Base, damaging the single-seat observation aircraft but escaping injury, officials said Tuesday.

The pilot, James Barrilleaux, was preparing to land at the desert base, located north of Los Angeles, on Monday afternoon when he noticed his right main landing gear was down but not locked. A nearby U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot confirmed the landing gear was not fully down.

Barrilleaux, a NASA research pilot since 1986, decided to attempt an emergency landing at 6:07 p.m. EDT on Edwards main runway, his jets right landing gear buckling as he set down.

The pilot used an emergency barrier  a suspended cable stretched across the runway  to stop the Hornet, which suffered between $20,000 and $200,000 in damage to its right wing and landing gear. Barrilleaux himself was not injured and exited the aircraft without incident.

Pilots at NASAs Dryden Flight Research Center, located at Edwards, use the F-18 as a safety chase and support aircraft. As such, F-18s accompany research missions to observe the research event, experiment or test to help make sure the flights are carried out safely, according to NASA.

Barrilleaux, who was flying a single-seat version of the McDonnell Douglas, was on a pilot proficiency flight during the mishap.

NASA is investigating the incident.

http://www.space.com/news/spaceagencies/f18_landing_000726.html

-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), July 26, 2000