USAF F-16 Down In New Mexico; Pilot Safe
A U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot has been released from medical treatment with “minor injuries” after ejecting from the aircraft near Holloman Air Force Base (AFB) in New Mexico yesterday…
A U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot has been released from medical treatment with “minor injuries” after ejecting from the aircraft near Holloman Air Force Base (AFB) in New Mexico yesterday (April 30). The single-seat F-16, assigned to the 49th Wing based at Holloman AFB, went down around 11:50 a.m. local time, according to the Air Force.
The crash occurred near White Sands National Park about 7 miles from the base, near the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range.
According to a report in Air Force Times, Holloman is a training hub for F-16 pilots, graduating an average of 180 candidates per year. Yesterday’s crash marks the fourth involving USAF F-16s within the past 12 months, the other three occurring in South Korea. The USAF news source cited an average of three F-16 losses per year over the past 10 years. The service currently operates 841 Fighting Falcons, with plans to reduce that number to 830 during fiscal year 2025, according to the report.
