Originally Posted by
RAFEngO74to09
From the latest 9RW Press Conference 21 Sep 1600 PST.
U-2 flights from Beale AFB suspended indefinitely.
Wow.
These guys are normally airborne somewhere in the world close to 24 in 7 from what they have told me in years past.
And, perhaps inevitably, the fatal crash adds to the call for unmanned (I'm sure a more politically correct term will be soon coined) aircraft to take over the surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
From the LA Times:
U-2 crash shows why some want drones to replace spy planes
By Samantha Masunaga
The crash of a U-2 spy plane that killed one pilot and injured another during a Tuesday training mission could bolster arguments in favor of unmanned systems, as the long battle against the decades-old plane’s retirement winds closer to an end.
U-2 crash shows why some want drones to replace spy planes - LA Times
Rest in Eternal Peace Lieutenant Colonel Ira 'Steve' Eadie.
Beale suspends all U-2 recon flights after deadly crash
1 killed, 1 injured in Tuesday's crash in Sutter Buttes
UPDATED 5:54 PM PDT Sep 21, 2016
BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (KCRA) —Officials identified the Beale Air Force Base pilot killed a U-2 plane crash Tuesday morning.
Lt. Col. Ira S. Eadie was with another pilot during a training mission near the Sutter Buttes when the plane crashed, the Air Force said Wednesday.
The other pilot suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is in good condition, the Air Force said. The pilot's identity has not been released.
The U-2 Dragon Lady crashed Tuesday morning in the Sutter Buttes shortly after takeoff from Beale Air Force Base, base officials said.
The two pilots who were inside the training plane ejected from the aircraft, but one of the pilots died while the other was injured, Air Force officials said Tuesday.
"The injured pilot was removed from the scene with a utility ground vehicle," 9th Mission Support Group commander Colonel Danielle Barnes said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
Beale Air Force base is indefinitely suspending reconnaissance flights after a deadly U-2 plane crash, Barnes said.
Beale suspends all U-2 recon flights after deadly crash | Sacramento News - KCRA Home