Bombtrack
06-30-2004, 02:01 AM
Canadian fighter pilot killed in U.S.
Officer was on exchange posting to the U.S. Marine Corps
BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP-CP) - Fighter jets at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort have been grounded after two pilots, one of them a Canadian, died in crashes less than 48 hours apart.
Capt. Derek R. Nichols, 34, of Tatamagouche, N.S., died in hospital in Savannah, Ga., on Monday evening after his FA-18 crashed earlier in the day while he was landing at the runway next to the air station, U.S. Marine Corps spokesman
Capt. Don Caetano said today.
Nichols, a Canadian Forces pilot, was assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 as part of an exchange mission with U.S. forces, Caetano said.
He was returning from a three-week training mission in Denmark when he crashed, officials said.
Rear Admiral Ian Mack, with the Canadian Embassy in Washington, said Nichols was also near the end of his three-year stint in the exchange program and was preparing to move to Cold Lake, Alta., for his next assignment this summer.
"So it's even more tragic given that set of circumstances," he said.
Gen. Ray Henault, chief of the Canadian Defence Staff, said in a statement that he was "deeply saddened by this tragic accident."
"On behalf of all Canadian Forces members, I wish to offer my sincere condolences to Capt. Nichols' family and friends," he said.
Nichols was married with two children.
The crash occurred just minutes after military officials began briefing the news media about a crash Saturday night in which an American pilot, Capt. Franklin Hooks, died.
Hooks of Dade City, Fla., was on training exercises on the USS Harry S. Truman when his jet went down in the eastern Atlantic about 95 kilometres south of the Azores.
Investigations are under way for both crashes and a group-wide stand down has been issued, said Col. Harmon Stockwell, commanding officer of Marine Aircraft Group 31, which includes seven Beaufort-based fighter attack squadrons.
A Canadian Forces officer from the Directorate of Flight Safety will act as an observer with the U.S. accident investigation team, officials said.
Though the crashes seem to have little in common, the fact that they occurred so closely together is reason to ground the jets, Caetano said.
"It's the smart thing to do and it's the safe thing to do," Caetano said.
RIP.
Officer was on exchange posting to the U.S. Marine Corps
BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP-CP) - Fighter jets at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort have been grounded after two pilots, one of them a Canadian, died in crashes less than 48 hours apart.
Capt. Derek R. Nichols, 34, of Tatamagouche, N.S., died in hospital in Savannah, Ga., on Monday evening after his FA-18 crashed earlier in the day while he was landing at the runway next to the air station, U.S. Marine Corps spokesman
Capt. Don Caetano said today.
Nichols, a Canadian Forces pilot, was assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 as part of an exchange mission with U.S. forces, Caetano said.
He was returning from a three-week training mission in Denmark when he crashed, officials said.
Rear Admiral Ian Mack, with the Canadian Embassy in Washington, said Nichols was also near the end of his three-year stint in the exchange program and was preparing to move to Cold Lake, Alta., for his next assignment this summer.
"So it's even more tragic given that set of circumstances," he said.
Gen. Ray Henault, chief of the Canadian Defence Staff, said in a statement that he was "deeply saddened by this tragic accident."
"On behalf of all Canadian Forces members, I wish to offer my sincere condolences to Capt. Nichols' family and friends," he said.
Nichols was married with two children.
The crash occurred just minutes after military officials began briefing the news media about a crash Saturday night in which an American pilot, Capt. Franklin Hooks, died.
Hooks of Dade City, Fla., was on training exercises on the USS Harry S. Truman when his jet went down in the eastern Atlantic about 95 kilometres south of the Azores.
Investigations are under way for both crashes and a group-wide stand down has been issued, said Col. Harmon Stockwell, commanding officer of Marine Aircraft Group 31, which includes seven Beaufort-based fighter attack squadrons.
A Canadian Forces officer from the Directorate of Flight Safety will act as an observer with the U.S. accident investigation team, officials said.
Though the crashes seem to have little in common, the fact that they occurred so closely together is reason to ground the jets, Caetano said.
"It's the smart thing to do and it's the safe thing to do," Caetano said.
RIP.