F-16 Loss of Control, Test Pilot on Yaw Departure

Рет қаралды 836,033

Күн бұрын

www.avweb.com At Edwards Air Force Base, they still test F16 fighters, because each software upgrade and each new weapons package introduces new parameters. Experimental test pilots need to identify the aircraft's performance limits and they need to know how it will perform before their brothers and sisters in arms take upgraded Vipers into combat. This is one of those tests.
Video by Glenn Pew for AVweb.com
www.glennpew.com

Пікірлер: 319

@brooks3racing1 4 жыл бұрын

This guy was one of sixteen finalists in the Canadian Space Agency’s astronaut selection competition. His aviation resume is unbelievable.

@MagnarNordal 9 жыл бұрын

Unlike many "crazy" videos, this one is very informative. Thank you for posting this.

@davidwheatcroft2797 3 жыл бұрын

CAVU skies to all aviators. Nearly died in a spiral dive in thick cloud myself. Wanted to quit, to panic, but my training saved me, "Power back to idle; roll wings level using artificial horizon; pull HARD; when the little bird well above the black, full power." Death just seconds away. It changes you. I'll never be so scared again!

@kentuckyblugrass 6 жыл бұрын

This video is awesome 👏🏻 Test pilots risk everything to gain just a minuscule amount information and in doing so they are potentially saving the lives of future pilots. Absolutely a phenomenal amount of courage these guys & girls have.

@jonoderidder 11 жыл бұрын

Amazing. Incredible courage, skill, and intelligence, Test pilots have to be some of the most special people there are, don't you think? Makes you realise how much dedication and bravery goes into the development of fly-by-wire systems in inherently unstable planes. I've heard it described as sitting on the front of a car at 60kph, pushing a bicycle in front of you backwards, holding the handles and trying to keep the bike going straight...

@MrJdsenior Жыл бұрын

I am going to go fly an F16 backwards. You can't do that. Hold my beer and watch this. That was incredible, and it looked like he was in departure for a long time. I wonder what was going through the test pilot's head after several seconds of THAT. Those guys have balls of steel, and a lot of skill. This is an awesome piece of flight footage. Whoa Nellie!

@david52875 12 жыл бұрын

For the Air Force to let you intentionally lose control of one of their hundred million dollar aircraft, you have to be smart.

@pdutube 3 жыл бұрын

Or $20M in this case.

@bertg.6056 3 жыл бұрын

Any pilot testing aircraft at Edwards is smart.

@TurkishRepublicanX 2 жыл бұрын

@@pdutube last I checked, F16 costed over 60 million dollars

@pdutube 2 жыл бұрын

@@TurkishRepublicanX Yeah, new Block 70s but the C & D initial flyaway unit cost was $20M. USAF isn't buying new F-16s (yet). The new batch production is for foreign export. Those are $60M+ depending on systems.

@TurkishRepublicanX 2 жыл бұрын

@@pdutube I think 20M$ figure is from the 80 ies dude.

@PC12Captain 10 жыл бұрын

Nice to see "Deuce" representing Canada so well! Safe flying Deuce!

@stephenantone5852 10 жыл бұрын

worked out there from 90-94 crewed 87-0392 never got tired of whacthing these guys push these planes

@psyience3213 7 жыл бұрын

what an amazing feat of engineering for the plane to not overstress under such conditions

@jasonrooster9866 6 жыл бұрын

Nice to see a short, concise and informative video every now and then. Great job!

@laoynaw2860 3 жыл бұрын

or in this case roughly 70 million. Thats my dream job...

@solomonpilot2510 6 жыл бұрын

I DO HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT 4 ALL TEST PILOTS ,MILITARY AND CIVILIANS AND THX 4 POSTING !

@20gilbert20 9 жыл бұрын

The discussion by "Deuce" Brophy was excellent! He was to the point, succinct, and lucid. I appreciate these explanations, since it only increases my bit of knowledge. Thank you for this good video.

@JoeInCT418 7 жыл бұрын

Gil Mosko I agree. I am not a pilot; always wanted to be, but my eyes were not AF "OK". So I read, and watched, and learned. I understand G forces, and IIRC, the F-16 has a 9 G limit? So by being lighter in weight than was estimated, the force applied by overcontrol had a greater-than-expected result on recovering control. Am I correct? So the affect was, there was nothing wrong with the S/W upgrade; it was a lighter-than-estimated aircraft weight which caused the unexpected result of the test maneuver.

@billr.1230 6 жыл бұрын

The F-16 has a 9G limit under certain configurations. The jet in the video though can pull 9G's.

@primate4 6 жыл бұрын

Gil Mosko I don’t know what those words mean, but that pilot is kick ass! He’s got the smarts real good!!!!

@tylerfb1 6 жыл бұрын

JosephK109 The presenter said that the g-limit was encountered due to post-departure gyrations due to the inherent nature of the aircraft. Seems to me this test was about whether or not the flight control system has the authority to recover after a departure in this situation. It did. Seems to me everything went as planned except for those gyration forces. But I would comment that if a computerized flight control system cannot account for changes in weight and causes departure because of it, seems to me something’s wrong with the flight control system. 😉

@sidv4615 2 жыл бұрын

@@JoeInCT418 you don't need good eyesight to be in the AF, i know a lot of viper guys who wore glasses but got LASIK and in the air force

@AVweb 14 жыл бұрын

Hi, RJ Thanks for the critical eye. Two things: 1) The KZfaq version isn't out of phase when I watch it on my system and the original file is fine, too. That said, I'd like all my vids to play properly on the computers I'm not using that access the internet through service providers to which I don't subscribe. I'll see what I can do. 2) You get what you pay for. So, expect your refund check in the mail and I'll expect mine from KZfaq. ;-] Best, Glenn Pew

@44hawk28 4 жыл бұрын

I was trained on flight characteristics of the F-16 because it was part of the class of aircraft I was trained to work on in avionics. I do remember when that type of loss of control on an F-16 was fatal to the aircraft.

@michaelsteiger8509 Ай бұрын

I had a FCC (flight control computer) anomaly during a BFM flight in the mid 90s in a Block 15 F-16A. During a hard pull the plane yawed. The snap roll at 400kts was violent and huge induced yaw . While in the “tumble I looked back to see what the controls were doing and I watched the stab move the whole travel +/- 60 degrees and the rudder flap a bit. After about 3 oscillations, I was at 200 kts going about 20 degrees nose low. It was “fun”. After we landed we downloaded the video and all 5 recording parameters and sent them to General Dynamics. Faults were in the FCC and there was an over G. 11plus positive and 6 in asymmetric. The plane was ok, little damage but was taken apart extensively. It appears one stab went nuts during the pull and failed. The plane recovered on its own. The data was compared to flight test data and similar points were obtained earlier . It did what it was programmed to do and recovered itself using the remaining flight controls . So the point was, “we have those data points” someone went out during testing and flew similar profiles during flight test! Geeezzee. They are true heros and gold star pilots like Deuce! Flying to the unknown and back daily……. Great video!

@slashusr 6 жыл бұрын

You have found a subscriber and I, finally, have found a military aviation and general aviation video channel worth watching (and listening to. Thank G-d, a human voice!). Now, to explore...sharp aft stick, "bootful" of right rudder, and departure from controlled flight...

@rpm1796 4 жыл бұрын

Well done Glen....great cover..

@davidsuggitt Жыл бұрын

I went to elementary school with this guy. We called him spaz because he was massively hyperactive. I made the mistake of picking a fight with him one day. His hands were so fast I couldn't get near him so I just gave up, apologized and never bothered him again.

@lauraradigan4114 4 жыл бұрын

This is some of the most interesting video I’ve seen . Keep it coming

@ilprep630 6 жыл бұрын

Great explanation, great video. Thank you.

@chartphred1 9 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the video and explanation by AF Pilot. Very interesting and fascinating to see the work they do. Would love to see more stuff like this.

@thudable 6 жыл бұрын

Very interesting. Thank you for posting.

@haider87 14 жыл бұрын

Awesome. That free fall was a lot scarier the second time viewing it with the commentary.

@lawtongore7053 3 жыл бұрын

Excellent video guys... keep em coming...

@chess747 9 жыл бұрын

Man these guys make the world keep moving forward total confidence and skill I'd love to be at the same level of skill well done.

@FilipeFGoncalves 4 жыл бұрын

What a science behind aviation. Props!

@SteveDiLullo 14 жыл бұрын

Very insightful, thanks for giving us 'regular pilots' a chance to learn.

@AVMamfortas 11 жыл бұрын

What superb intellectual and courageous work.

@johno9507 7 жыл бұрын

I used to get into this situation on Falcon 4.0 sim when carrying a full bomb load while maneuvering, even with the bolck 50 upgrade. Even turning off the pitch override, trying to wiggle out of a deep stall didn't always work and I ended up bombing the enemy with my whole aircraft.

@rihamy2nd 7 жыл бұрын

John O Falcon 4.0... memories.

@HeliZero 6 жыл бұрын

I had a voodoo gfx and F 4.0 was awesome. I loved to call in an emergency and get guided back to the airfield. I could also deadstick land the bird. To minimize drag i jettisoned external fuel tank and missiles.

@porschetech72901 5 жыл бұрын

John O YOU didnt get into ANY situation your crappy ass stupid video game did its in no way at ALL even remotely kinda sorta mabbee the same .... now please sit down yer mommy be here pick you up shortly take ya for ice cream

@FlightDreamz 3 жыл бұрын

Do you have Falcon 4.0 : Allied Force?? Or one of the mods for the original Falcon 4.0? Would love to see a video of your flying

@welshpete12 7 жыл бұрын

Very interesting , and informative . Thank you for posting .

@andyw3152 6 жыл бұрын

Great explanation by a very intelligent officer.

@kd4pba 7 жыл бұрын

Awesome video.

@MikeKobb 14 жыл бұрын

Very cool video! Thanks again for posting such interesting stuff.

@griffn14 11 жыл бұрын

I don't understand why did it go into a right spin when the asymmetric load and drag was on the left side. One would think that the aircraft has a tendency to spin to the left in that condition.

@JayDKB 6 жыл бұрын

WOW thats dangerous job and very interesting

@coolins335 13 жыл бұрын

very interesting videos, thanks for the upload. Shame you don't have both channels of audio here, I think the video would have benefited from it.

@flyingcatsofthesalishsea. 8 жыл бұрын

Ya ti balls forsure...that is one tuff little fighting falcon..thanks for the upload.

@irpat54 6 жыл бұрын

these people are awesome and should be admired for their very important and dangerous job.

@dracoQuest 6 жыл бұрын

You're just proving my point about test pilots. Every last ones out of their ever-loving Minds. Will you guys do is insane. Do me a favor and don't break any of my aircraft

@torch39 13 жыл бұрын

What I didn't hear was the method of recovering from the departure. Perhaps the pilot used the Towel Rack Recovery" method. Never the less I'd like to hear more. Great vid, I'll be watching.

@dougfuller7314 6 жыл бұрын

I saw an F-16 at Edwards come in at low altitude, depart controlled flight and then accelerate out in a different direction. Whole thing took about 5 seconds. When they landed the computer tech in the back seat looked kind green...

@Snipe4261 10 жыл бұрын

That's pretty intense.

@brahimkhalidoktajistanbiab8550 6 жыл бұрын

Snipe4261 cv yas louvmi yas ok

@daffidavit 6 жыл бұрын

I deleted my old comment because I listened to this video a few more times attempting to learn what happened here. The excess G limits were in the "rolling" direction during the departure phase of the maneuver. Since the airplane was lighter than expected, the G "limit" was higher than they originally believed. Therefore, they did not overstress the jet in the "rolling" moment of the departure phase of flight. I think.

@jj4791 6 ай бұрын

Rolling-G limit is always lower than symmetrical G-limit. Because to roll, one wing must develop more lift than the other. If one wing develops more lift than the other in order to roll, and you pull to maximum symmetrical G limit, while rolling, then by default one wing is below that limit and the other has exceeded it. Typically you will see a ~25% reduction in allowable limit G load with ailerons deflected. This is one of the reasons the Extra-330 has a wing rated over 22g ultimate, for an aircraft that has a published limit load of +/-10g. Because aerobatic pilots don't always reduce G while rolling. This is of course at a defined gross weight. If the aircraft is lighter, the wing will experience less stress at the same G-load. Therefore, you have more margin between structural failure at lower weights. Allowing you to exceed the published G-limit before actually exceeding the structural bending limit of the wing. But, this assumes the reduced weight was removed from the fuselage, and not the wingtip, or anywhere outboard on the wing. A reduced fuselage weight means reduced wing bending moment at any given G-loading. An F-16 carries a substantial part of its gross weight as internal fuel located inboard of the wing, mostly contained in the root. It consumes this fuel at a staggering rate, often exhausting its fuel in a 1.5hr mission. Or as little as 15min with afterburner. So, if this test required climbing to altitude, cruising to a test area, and performing maneuvers then it probably consumed a substantial portion of its fuel by then. Maybe 10% of its mission takeoff weight. Therefore, this maneuver might have exceeded to published rolling G limit assuming gross weight. But at the time of the incident, the aircraft was light enough not to over strain the structure. This applies to Cessnas as well as space shuttles.

@daffidavit 6 ай бұрын

Wow, I made my comment five years ago? It seems more like five months ago. I think I get your point. Looking at it another way, if the g meter is on the longitudinal axis or centerline of the instrument panel and it reads the max g during a rolling moment, the g meter will not be reading the exact amount of g being exerted on each wingtip. Your point is that if the g limit is read at it's max allowable as per the g meter, at least some other point on the aircraft will be exceeding the maximum load limit. I think that is what you are saying. Anyway, thanks for the reply. @@jj4791

@N21X 14 жыл бұрын

Neat info! Yet another fun video!

@beachboardfan9544 5 жыл бұрын

Daaaaamn! Gave me goosebumps just watching.

@pedrodiaz5540 5 жыл бұрын

Very nice , pure facts up to the point .

@likeawhispr 14 жыл бұрын

excellent vid. thanks for posting!

@kentuckyblugrass 6 жыл бұрын

Not sure what’s more impressive. The pilot or the fact that the F-16 didn’t disintegrate under such force.

@jj4791 6 ай бұрын

Air density, and therefore q, are much reduced at 35,000'. Somewhere in the range of 0.3. An aircraft surface can only generate a certain maximum lift coefficient. Usually in the range of 1.28 (flat plate) to 2.0 (high lift airfoil). The structure only needs to withstand the force it is capable of generating through aerodynamics under a given free-stream condition. An aircraft capable of sustained 9g flight, where it requires ~ 400ktas at sea level to attain, is going to be virtually impossible to break at 35,000' while subsonic.

@smudent2010 3 жыл бұрын

That's a pretty sweet exchange posting for a Canadian forces pilot!

@CrashTestPilot 14 жыл бұрын

Canada's best teaching them how it's done. Atta Boy Deuce!

@CoenTunnel 14 жыл бұрын

AVWEB, you made a nice video 5 stars!

@zondaracer 12 жыл бұрын

@drbackjack Also by his rank and wings, and of course his friendliness

@crazynaska 12 жыл бұрын

That guy is Canadian on loan to the U.S. air force.

@jmc4181 3 жыл бұрын

Ahhh....Canadian.... That explains why the F-16 didn’t “tip” in flight. Doh!!!

@44hawk28 5 жыл бұрын

Cool, one of the touchiest simulators I ever attempted to fly was for the F-16.

@TEHGROUND 12 жыл бұрын

Interesting video.

@LexatNews 3 жыл бұрын

Scientific approach. Nice

@PsuPepperoni 14 жыл бұрын

Was that guy the one flying the plane in the video?

@avro549B 6 жыл бұрын

That would seem to qualify as a flick roll. (Hard back and full rudder's the usual input to induce one, if I recall correctly.) Not usually performed by machines festooned with stores.

@coojsta69 9 жыл бұрын

Balls of .... titanium !

@user-gu1hl2kx2k 8 жыл бұрын

+coojsta69 titanium is softer than steel

@coojsta69 8 жыл бұрын

a steel balls are reserved for them wing suit maniacs that fall/glide past mountain tops only leaving a meter of between death and life :)

@dudemon111 7 жыл бұрын

Attention scientific community: As per Ricky J., Element Ti (Titanium, #22) and Fe (Iron, #26, main element of steel alloy) are now the same

@mmabagain 6 жыл бұрын

Umm....steel is steel and titanium is titanium. Definitely not the same. I machine both every day.

@theretep6494 4 жыл бұрын

Rick Johnson you’re also a fucking moron you should know that to

@songoku8195 7 жыл бұрын

This implies to that the F-16 has one of the best flight control system in the world i.e. Quadruplex fly-by-wire

@johnbuffaloe9160 10 жыл бұрын

I would love to go flying with one of these folks.

@toastrecon 2 жыл бұрын

Just don’t eat lunch beforehand. Lol.

@anthonydunne5772 5 жыл бұрын

Good on ya Des...

@Paulosentinela 14 жыл бұрын

very good!

@hermangre 9 жыл бұрын

Inertial Coupling. I read i a description of Milburn Apt's flight that got into that, in Neil van Sickle's Modern Airmanship book. And there is an essay "Chuck Yeager's Wild Ride", on the Internet. (I don't remember whether or not he 'inertial coupled'. But Milburn Apt crashed.)

@kanagawa2008 3 жыл бұрын

The Major explaining the scenario must be one party animal.

@Cheezsoup 10 жыл бұрын

I can't really work it out from what he said but he did mention something about " to induce departure rapid aft stick was input" not only did this cause departure but it caused some side slipping (β) as well, perhaps the departure and side slip effected the direction of spin. Once spin is established it is anyone's guess what happens.

@charleschampion5232 6 жыл бұрын

"to induce departure rapid aft stick was input" That's what she said

@geoben1810 4 жыл бұрын

Deadly....... just the fact that it can recover like that.... and didn't break apart.

@Maxumized 6 жыл бұрын

Were pants evaluated for Yaw and tumble slippage? He basically lost lift as the angle of attack was rapidly demanded from the pilot. Same thing happens in a Cessna if you turn too sharp into your final approach.

@drstrange2292 9 жыл бұрын

F-16 is one of my favorites

@morteparla6926 6 жыл бұрын

I'm more surprised the engine didn't flame out.

@LumaControl 5 жыл бұрын

#fuelpumpsforlife

@johnaugsburger6192 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks

@griffn14 10 жыл бұрын

Yes, I agree that the sideslip determined the direction of the spin.I was puzzled by what he said that with the missiles on the left you get the effect of putting in full right rudder.Maybe the flight computer feeds in right rudder in that configuration and that's why it departs that way.

@remasali9179 8 жыл бұрын

good pilot

@enowlin82 12 жыл бұрын

@slarmas What are you talking about? Watch the first 15 seconds again. "Believe it or not, what you're seeing here is deliberate...."

@joeshmoe12301230 5 жыл бұрын

So it essentially stalled and started to spin. I wonder what air speed it reduced to during the spin, and at what speed it fully recovered.

@Floresomar 13 жыл бұрын

What's the first step for becoming a pilot?

@michaelesq.atpcfii.9862 3 жыл бұрын

I hope that ejection seat is reliable!

@trickcyclists 6 жыл бұрын

"Darling I'm home... oh, just another day at the office dear.." (Holy crap !! ) ...

@McCharlie 7 жыл бұрын

Just to be clear, it departed controlled flight?

@145Slap789 11 жыл бұрын

Test pilots have huge balls.

@souocara38able 6 жыл бұрын

I want that job!

@89turbomk3 3 жыл бұрын

And this is why the us Air Force has top notch pilots

@travis8534 3 жыл бұрын

Dream job right there

@Eclipse-lw4vf Жыл бұрын

I cannot imagine being told "so i need u to basically make it uncontrollable and recover it so we can see what the limit is"

@robertstack2144 2 жыл бұрын

Good 'Ole Sierra Hotel boys club. They yearn for the days of the original Muroc and Jackie Cochran's "watering hole ranch" with all the bennies.

@luukgoedhart 6 жыл бұрын

Broca's area well developed I'd say.

@AV8R4HM 14 жыл бұрын

WOW, Im blown away with this! That is crazy! I want in!!! LOL!

@realanpropa876 13 жыл бұрын

he's also an engineer ! PINKYs UP !

@cybervegeto 14 жыл бұрын

Beautiful...... my dream is to fly one of those babies. Watching these test stunts just gets me "aroused" even more. ;) I had a pilot explain to me (in detail) how to do those stunts one time; but I was just undereducated enough to not retain any of it, as I hardly understood it at all. Hopefully I'll be testing aircraft like that someday....

@hotcakesism 4 жыл бұрын

curious where you are now

@lw216316 6 жыл бұрын

its a wonder it didn't rip off the wings or tail, going sideways that fast. I flew the wings off a remote control plane once while in a move like that.

@billbright1755 7 жыл бұрын

A quick change of flying togs and alls well!

@sanchoquixote5518 8 жыл бұрын

Oooooooh... I want that pointer stick!

@KutWrite 6 жыл бұрын

You can get them on line... meaning with the model airplane attached.

@casualguy3938 3 жыл бұрын

I think the "BALL compartment" extends far behind the trailing edge of the canopy in this particular aircraft.

@intrepid_wandering 13 жыл бұрын

Smart Major, seems to be very good at his job. God, imagine the G's pulling in that spin.

@goodcyrus 3 жыл бұрын

Try being an astronaut. One of my Caltech PhD friends became one. My office mate, Eric Schultz, got killed in a secret fighter jet test. Perspective. >> A pilot was killed in another plane crash this week at the Nevada Test and Training Range, the Air Force said. Lt. Col. Eric Schultz, 44, died from injuries sustained in an accident in which an aircraft crashed around 6 p.m. local time on Tuesday at the range, located about 100 miles northwest of Nellis Air Force Base, according to a release from the base issued Friday evening.

@Aofex 11 жыл бұрын

He is not "trying" to do anything. He is saying exactly what has be said. If you don't get it, well, you are the one with the problem.

@fixizin 10 жыл бұрын

Canada our good buddies, and a REAL ally for... ever. Except for some friction back in the early days... lol. Go NORAD!

@slashusr 6 жыл бұрын

Would that be 1812, "54 40 or Fight!" or The Alaska Boundary Dispute? Our cousins have had a few run-ins, haven't they? The history of Canadian American Relations is a truly fascinating subject for study.

@QuasiRandomViewer 6 жыл бұрын

Ah, that explains his rank insignia.

@goutvols103 6 жыл бұрын

Or in most recent history, AWOL from Vietnam.

@jjthomas2297 4 жыл бұрын

@@goutvols103 They were smart enough to stay out of that mess...

@richardbanks3915 3 жыл бұрын

I was part of the flight test team with General Dynamic's 1982 - 1992. This video is nothing compared to GD's chief test pilot John Fergione's experience when the drogue chute did not deploy at 25,000 feet.

@belacickekl7579 2 жыл бұрын

Was that when the engine flamed out?

@heyarno 6 жыл бұрын

So this was a test of software, but the pilot recovered the plane? Or did the pilot test a auto levelling feature like in the mig-21 where you press a button that recovers the plane to level flight?

@martinrps13 4 жыл бұрын

Arno nümuss google Auto GCAS

@martinrps13 4 жыл бұрын

www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/news/features/2016/saving-the-good-guys--seventh-save-illustrates-life-saving-auto-.html