Navy: Military plane crash kills 3 in Washington State
This photo provided by Stan Dammel shows a field near Harrington, Wash. where a E/A-6B Prowler military airplane from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island crashed Monday, March 11, 2013. The U.S. Navy said all three crew members aboard the plane died in the crash. / AP Photo/Courtesy of Stan Dammel
SPOKANE, Wash.Three crew members on board were killed when a military plane crashed in Eastern Washington on Monday morning, CBS affiliate KREM-TV reports.
The E/A-6B Prowler flying from Naval Air Station Whidbey fell from the sky at around 8;30 a.m., U.S. Navy Lt. Kakiel told KREM-TV.
Witnesses said the plane was in a nose dive on its way down until colliding with the farmland below.
"You could see smoke and bits of plane in the middle of the field," local resident HaLee Walter told KREM-TV after visiting the crash site.
The Navy informed Congress that the wingman of the crashed plane reported that no parachutes were deployed.
"First responders are on the scene and have reported finding partial remains of the mishap aircrew," the Navy informed Congress. "All three onboard are presumed dead."
The identities of the crew were not immediately available.
The Prowler was "engaged in a low-level navigation training mission," the Navy told Congress. Whidbey Island officials said the cause of the accident was under investigation.
NAS Whidbey Island is home to the U.S. Navy's tactical electronic warfare squadrons. Crews from the base, located on Puget Sound, regularly fly across Eastern Washington for training exercises.
"The thoughts and prayers of northwest Washington are with the families of the aircrew who lost their lives today," said U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., who represents the Whidbey Island area. "This tragic crash is a painful reminder of the dangerous work that members of the armed services perform every day in service to our nation."
The state House of Representatives observed a moment of silence Monday in response to the crash.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said the crew of the plane was serving the nation.
"I know all Washingtonians join me in sending condolences to the crew's families and to their fellow service members," Inslee said.
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., also said her prayers were with family members of the crew.
The crash occurred in a rural area between the towns of Harrington and Odessa, about 50 miles west of Spokane. Aerial views of the crash site showed a large crater in a farm field, surrounded by blackened vegetation. Much of the plane appeared to have disintegrated on impact.
The Prowler specializes in electronic warfare such as jamming enemy radar and intercepting radio transmissions. It can also be equipped with missiles.
Whidbey Island officials said the plane that crashed was attached to Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ-129.
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Semper fi.
I like to add my deepest feelings of sorrow for what just happened in this tragical crash, and I mean it. The loss of loved ones can never be compensated by any of us or what we might say, but surely know they who died live on into another beautiful sphere for us unkown, they know but this, despite the event, we must go on in our work on this side of the veil and on the other side as well, and god will provide hope and blessings to those left behind.
As tragic as this all is, still it is a wake up call for all of us to care about each other and desire to help others to be in safety and to help to make the world more safe, regardless to the pressure at hand. May God bless You and add compensation to your grief. Thank You for Your sacrifice and devotion to help us all. Thank You.
Still my comment was not directed toward the inflicted but the cause of so many deaths world wide in armed forces and human made errors is not due to our risk being in service but more to a lot of careless leadership and lack of procedure and preparation to prevent such events. Even if this one turns out to be something nobody could do anything about it, it will still be lack of some kind of prep care for the task at hand.
I tried to say, I am angry with all the knowledge and technical know how today that human life is so much at risk, but we could prevent most of it.
Aviation accidents are a proof of this.
War time risks as well.
Flying is not dangerous, something else happened....as always.
They should not be at risk, they were made to risk.
Risk management is up to date, these failures are human maid most the time.
World wide they all should not be at risk, we have the know how but not the willingness to prevent risks. So it is. ok
Flying is not dangerous, something else happened....as always.
They should not be at risk, they were made to risk.
Risk management is up to date, these failures are human maid most the time.
World wide they all should not be at risk, we have the know how but not the willingness to prevent risks. So it is. ok
Thank you to our service members who risk their lives not only fighting, but training to go to the battle field. We appreciate all the sacrifices and treasure the freedom we enjoy.
May God bless, protect and comfort each of you.
This report is amateurish. My college Newswriting 101 prof would have given me a D.
For example:
They're crew members, no need to say "on board."
"Witnesses said the plane was in a nose dive on its way down until colliding with the farmland below."
A nose-dive is DOWN.
You CANNOT collide with the ground. Collision is defined as two moving objects striking each other. Read your AP Stylebook.
"below" is redundant.
"The Navy informed Congress that the wingman of the crashed plane reported that no parachutes were deployed."
Clumsy. Instead, "The wingman did not see any parachutes, the Navy said."
Why do we care that the Navy told Congress?
"Aerial views of the crash site showed a large crater in a farm field, surrounded by blackened vegetation."
Delete "of the crash site." It's obvious you're talking about the site.
"Whidbey Island officials said the plane that crashed was attached to Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ-129."
Delete "that crashed" as redundant.
Remember Inverted Pyramid style of writing: most important first. The squadron designation should have been near the top.
I worked on newspapers for 12 years and know my craft.
Whoever wrote this needs a wizened, old copy editor overseeing them. But then, that's the problem today, most copy editors have been dismissed and we readers get dismal writing straight from the tablet.
I guess that's what happens when you hire "whiz kids" who think that tapping keys into blogs makes them a "journalist."
Wow. Who has the paying job?
Regards,
not cranky
Running low on your meds? Seems like it might be time to check back in with your psychotherapist.