2020 United States Air Force E-11A crash explained

2020 United States Air Force E-11A crash
Image Upright:1.2
Occurrence Type:Accident
Summary:Engine loss caused by a broken turbine blade; shut-down of operating engine
Site:Dih Yak District, Ghazni Province, Afghanistan
Total Fatalities:4
Ground Fatalities:2
Aircraft Type:Northrop Grumman E-11A
(Bombardier Global Express)
Operator:430th Expeditionary Electronic Combat Squadron, USAF
Tail Number:11-9358
Origin:Kandahar International Airport
Destination:Kandahar International Airport
Occupants:2
Passengers:0
Crew:2
Fatalities:2[1]
Survivors:0

On 27 January 2020, a United States Air Force Bombardier Global Express E-11A aircraft crashed in Afghanistan's Dih Yak District, Ghazni Province. Two people on board were killed, who comprised the entire crew, according to U.S. military sources. With the complete withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan in August 2021, this was the last acknowledged U.S. fatal aviation incident of the War in Afghanistan.

Accident

The aircraft crashed at 13:10 local time (08:40 UTC) in the Dih Yak District. Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. The crash site was 130km (80miles) southwest of Kabul, and near the village of Sado Khelo.[2] [3] Voice of America stated that all five people on board were killed.[4] The U.S. Department of Defense only confirmed two fatalities recovered at the crash site.[5] [6] Two Afghan locals died on the ground as consequence of the crash.

It was originally reported to be an aircraft of Ariana Afghan Airlines,[7] [8] but the airline later ruled out this possibility, saying all its flights had been accounted for.[2] A spokesperson for the United States military confirmed the identity of the aircraft involved in the incident, which occurred in an area controlled by the Taliban.[3] A Taliban spokesperson said to Al-Arabiyah that Taliban militias shot down the aircraft killing everyone on board, including high-ranking officials. However, these reports remain unconfirmed.[9] [10] Reports circulated by state-affiliated media of both Iran and Russia suggested that the Central Intelligence Agency's chief of Iran operations, Michael D'Andrea, was killed in the crash.[11] [12] These reports are also unconfirmed, and the CIA neither confirmed nor denied the presence of its officers aboard the crashed plane.[13] [14]

On 29 January 2020, Pentagon sources identified the airmen killed in the crash as Lieutenant Colonel Paul K. Voss of Yigo, Guam and Captain Ryan S. Phaneuf of Hudson, New Hampshire. Voss was 46 years old and had served in the Air Force for 25 years; Phaneuf was 30 years old and had served for eight years.[15]

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Bombardier Global Express outfitted by Northrop Grumman as an E-11A of the United States Air Force.[16] Video of the crash scene shows that the aircraft serial number was 11–9358,[17] msn 9358. The aircraft first flew in 2009 and was operated by the 430th Expeditionary Electronic Combat Squadron in the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node role.[18] The aircraft involved in the crash was one of only four in the United States Air Force.[2]

Investigation and findings

American military authorities opened an investigation into the incident.[3] The aircraft's flight data recorder was recovered.[1]

The investigation concluded that the crash was caused by a broken turbine blade on the left engine compounded by pilot error.[19] The crew misidentified which engine had failed. As a result, the pilots mistakenly shut off power to the right engine, believing the left engine was still intact. The failure to restart the correct engine in the air, and their attempt to return to Kandahar Air Base, substantially contributed to the mishap. With no working engines, the aircraft lacked the necessary altitude and airspeed to glide to the nearest base, forcing them to make an emergency landing on the snowy terrain, which proved too rugged to land safely.[19]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Remains of 2 US service members recovered from E-11A crash by Special Operations Forces . 28 January 2020 . Connecting Vets . January 28, 2020.
  2. News: Afghan plane crash: Mystery over crash in Taliban territory . BBC News . 27 January 2020 . 27 January 2020.
  3. Web site: Air Force E-11A aircraft goes down in eastern Afghanistan; US military investigating . Howard . Altman . Kent . Miller . 27 January 2020 . Military Times . 27 January 2020.
  4. Web site: Official: 5 Killed in Afghanistan Plane Crash . Ayeesha . Tanzeem . Voice of America . 27 January 2020.
  5. News: U.S. forces recover bodies of two U.S. service members from site of plane crash in Taliban territory in Afghanistan. 28 January 2020. The Washington Post. 28 January 2020.
  6. Web site: Crew Remains Recovered From E-11A Crash . Brian W. . Everstine . 28 January 2020 . Airforcemag . 28 January 2020.
  7. News: US army investigating plane crash in Taliban-held area . https://web.archive.org/web/20200127131425/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/afghan-passenger-plane-crashes-in-taliban-held-eastern-area/2020/01/27/67d54be6-40f0-11ea-99c7-1dfd4241a2fe_story.html . dead . 27 January 2020 . Washington Post . 27 January 2020.
  8. Web site: Plane crashes in Afghanistan's Ghazni province: Officials . Al Jazeera . 27 January 2020.
  9. Web site: Taliban says it shot down plane carrying high-ranking US military personnel . 27 January 2020 . Al Arabiyah . 27 January 2020.
  10. Web site: طالبان مسئولیت سرنگون کردن یک فروند هواپیمای حامل "افسران اطلاعاتی آمریکا" در افغانستان را بر عهده گرفتند . Response to Downing of 'US Intelligence' Aircraft in Afghanistan . 27 January 2020 . ار.اف.ای - RFI. fa. 28 January 2020 .
  11. Web site: 2020-01-28. Iran TV uses 'Zero Dark Thirty' screenshot to claim CIA boss was killed in Afghanistan plane crash. https://web.archive.org/web/20200128215643/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/iran-zero-dark-thirty-afghanistan-plane-crash-cia-a9306871.html . 2020-01-28 . limited . live. 2020-12-08. The Independent. en.
  12. News: 2020-02-04. Unsupported Claims that CIA's Iran Chief Died in Afghan Crash. 2020-12-08. Polygraph.info. en. Tlis. Fatima.
  13. Web site: Dozier. Kimberly. 2020-02-01. A U.S. Plane Crashed in Afghanistan. Why So Many Believed a CIA Chief Was On It.. 2020-12-08. Time.
  14. Web site: Bostock. Bill. Iranian state TV used a photo of an actor from 'Zero Dark Thirty' to spread a wild theory that a senior CIA official was killed in a plane crash in Afghanistan. 2020-12-08. Business Insider.
  15. Web site: DOD Identifies Airmen Killed in E-11 Crash. 2020-01-29. Air Force Magazine. en-US. 2020-01-30.
  16. Web site: No Afghan Ariana Airlines Crash . Simon . Hradecky . Aviation Herald . 27 January 2020.
  17. AirportWebcams . 1221786906205265920 . 27 January 2020 . UPDATE: Afghanistan crash. .
  18. Web site: 11-9358 accident description. Aviation Safety Network. 27 January 2020.
  19. News: Broken fan blade, shutdown of wrong engine led to fatal E-11 crash in Afghanistan, report says. Stephen. Losey. Air Force Times. January 21, 2021. January 22, 2021.