F-16 gets blasted by B-1B thrust! 81 second video.

F-16](ItemFix - Social Video Factory) 81 second video.

Whoops!

Take it out of his pay.

“But Sir, on Mythbusters they said it couldn’t happen. I SWEAR!!”

Something isn’t right about that video. Did you notice how tall that F-16 was sitting on it’s landing gear? Let alone with all the people out there no one went over to assist the pilot???

Not to mention that the camera"person" didn’t immediately pan back to it and watch it.

The F-16 didn’t appear to be abnormally tall to me. I imagine the camera person was looking through the viewfinder and might not have even noticed exactly what had happened until after he/she looked up.

While working in a secure area, regardless of the problem, you do not have authority to run out into an active area. Had the situation seemed a life or death potential, I’m sure someone would have violated base rules to assist.

In this case it seems to be more a case of embarrassment, than impending danger. I’m sure the proper channels were followed and help was on the way.

As for too tall, I’ll just chock it up to seeing an aircraft in an unusual position. We had a Lear that someone had left the cross over valve open all night. I opened the door in the morning and this Lear 35 was sitting with one tip tank touching the hangar floor, and the other way, way, up in the air. That didn’t look right either!

??? Why wouldn’t the wing tanks have gravitated to equality?

Was one of the wings sitting in an increased gravity field? :wink:

Learjet ](ASN Aircraft accident Learjet 36A JY-AFC Amman-Marka International Airport (ADJ)) This is a crash I remember well. The aircraft was waiting for quite awhile before permission to take-off was granted. It was believed that the cross over valve was open, and due to gravity, once the fuel started moving one way, it just kept going.

Plus the fact I live in Toronto, if I recall correctly, the lear that ended up sitting on it’s wing, was during winter. So the Lear was fueled at night with very cold fuel, and then placed in the hangar overnight. So as the fuel heats up, it expands, plus the cross over valve was open.

The hangar floor was covered in Jet A1, and we had to pull a fuel truck up to the back door, run the hose thru the hangar, way up a ladder, to fill the now empty wing! Then we called the fire dept at Toronto International (Pearson), in that order…

Regarding the B1B and F16… The people working were probably not aware of much else beside the two B1B’s departing.

airliners.net/open.file/0576730/M/

One full tip tank and the opposite empty will give you that result, but it’s due to human error, not a magic fuel transfer.

If the airplane is parked on a slope with the crossflow valve open the fuel will start flowing to the lower side. The lower side gets heavier, causing the landing gear strut to compress, causing the low side to get even lower. Eventually it can end up like the picture.
A collapsed strut can do the same thing, even if the airplane is parked on a level surface.

Which is why we always took such care in loading bulk cargoes, to ensure the ship kept on a relatively even keel.

Hadn’t thought of that one…

Pop

Let alone with all the people out there no one went over to assist the pilot???

I used to work at EFD, with a Air NG F-16 group on the field. There were signs posted everywhere and we covered this in all safety meetings. I forget the chemical, however inhalation is deadly. Bottom line, we were instucted to never approach an F-16 crash or incident. Only the Fire Dept with Breathing Systems where allowed to approach. I am guesing at this facility this same rule is practiced.

The learjet photo above, is exactly what a fuel cross-over value left in the open position, does too an aircraft. It will continue until it sits on the tip tank, or someone puts some fuel in the opposite wing.

The Lear I assisted was actually a Lear 25B, and the wing sat alot higher than a 35 when resting on one tip tank. The fuel actually filled the right wing, and had dumped Jet A1 out of the over flow valve and all over the hangar floor!!!

[ Airworthiness Directive ]](Learjet Model 23, 24, 24A, 24B, 24B-A, 24C, 24D,)regarding Learjets.

You’re thinking about the hydrazine that powers the F-16 emergency apu.

I do beleive you are correct Sir!

Thanks