F-16 Drops Fuel Tanks, Bomb At Hill AFB

A fighter pilot dropped munitions and two external fuel tanks onto an uninhabited area near Hill Air Force Base after experiencing an in-flight emergency, according to this report from The Salt lake City Tribune.

A bomb destroyed a small tin work shed near an area where ordnance is stored on the base’s west side. It also damaged a nearby transformer and power lines, causing a basewide power outage. But base officials say no one was injured in the 3:50 p.m. incident, and the pilot landed safely. None of the stored ordnance, which is kept in underground bunkers, was damaged or destroyed.

Col. Scott Zobrist, commanding officer of the 388th Fighter Wing, said the pilot of the aircraft, an F-16 Falcon fighter jet, was alerted to an emergency situation during takeoff and, following safety procedures, jettisoned the fuel tanks and munitions before making a final pass to land the $25 million, single-engine fighter.

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