Jet Runs Off Quito Runway

QUITO, Ecuador – A Fokker F-28 passenger jet carrying more than 60 people ran off an airstrip in the Ecuadorean capital on Monday, skidding 400 meters and smashing through a brick wall.

Authorities said none of the 62 passengers and crew members aboard the Fokker F-28 operated by Ecuadorean airline Icaro were injured.

The flight attempted to take off just after 11:00 a.m. from Quito’s Mariscal Sucre airport en route to the jungle city of El Coca, when it hit a metal antenna at the end of the runway.

The cause of the accident was not known.

El Telegrafo newspaper reported that the yellow jet, painted with the logo of the Guayaquil-based Barcelona soccer team, is used to ferry the squad around the country. But there were no players on board, and it was not clear why it was being used for a regular passenger flight.

Icaro and Civil Aviation did not say how many crew members were on board, but local media reported there were six.

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NASA Delays Hubble Mission

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida – NASA is delaying next month’s shuttle launch to the Hubble Space Telescope because of problems stemming from Hurricane Ike and the preparation of replacement parts for the observatory.

The space shuttle Atlantis is now set to blast off at 10:19 p.m. ET on October 14 for the last visit to the orbiting telescope, officials said Wednesday. Liftoff had been scheduled for the wee hours of October 10, technically making this a five-day postponement.

Atlantis’ seven astronauts, who wrapped up a practice countdown at the launching site Wednesday, lost a week of training because of Hurricane Ike. The hurricane shut down the Johnson Space Center in Houston which did not reopen until this week.

Payload problems also contributed to the delay. Last week, NASA had trouble with the insulation on replacement batteries for Hubble and over the weekend, encountered snags loading the equipment at the launch pad.

The delay also pushes back the launch of Endeavour’s space station mission to November 16. Endeavour will serve as the rescue ship if there is an emergency.

Tropical storms Fay and Hanna prompted NASA earlier this month to put off the Hubble flight by two days with original launch date October 8.

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Engine Failure Caused Russian 737 Crash

MOSCOW, Russia – Investigators ruled out engine failure as causing the weekend plane crash in Russia that killed all 88 people on board.

The Interstate Aviation Committee said both engines on the Boeing 737-500 were working when it crashed Sunday while preparing to land in the Ural Mountains city of Perm. The planes belonged to the Russian carrier Aeroflot-Nord.

Flight controller Irek Bikbov said in remarks broadcast by state-run Channel One television over the weekend that the jet’s pilot was behaving strangely, disobeying orders to descend on the final approach and instead taking the jet to a higher altitude. Bikbov said he then ordered the pilot to make a second run, but instead of making the right turn, he turned left.

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National World War II Museum Displays Nazi Plane

NEW ORLEANS – The National World War II Museum unveiled a Nazi fighter plane rarely exhibited in the United States and it will be displayed in a simulated dogfight with its British adversary on September 11.

The Germans built more than 30,000 Messerschimdtt Bf 109 from 1939-1945 and the fighter scored more verified kills than any other World War II aircraft. They looped, dived and rolled in dogfights over London with British Spitfires during the Battle of Britain in 1940.

The National Museum’s Supermarine Spitfire IVB has been part of its collection since 1998, two years before it opened. It will be displayed in a stimulated dogfight with the Messerschimdt Bf 109-G, which among is only handful in U.S. collections, though there are more on display in Europe.

The recently purchased fighter was assembled with parts from crash sites, former manufacturers and some new pieces.

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C-17 Makes First After-Dark Landing in Antarctica

PEGAUSUS ICE RUNWAY, Antarctica – A C-17 Globemaster III aircrew from McChord Air Force Base in Washington, performed the first known after dark landing in Antarctica using night vision goggles on September 11.

The McChord aircrew, consisting of active duty Airmen from the 62^nd Airlift Wing and Reservists from the 446^th Airlift Wing, verified the C-17’s capability to access McMurdo Station, Antarctica, by landing in complete darkness using night-vision technology in combination with reflective cones.

The mission was flown as part of Operation Deep Freeze, which is commanded by US Pacific Command’s Joint Task Force Support Forces Antarctica. Headquartered at Hickman AFB, Hawaii, and led by 13^th Air Force, JTF SFA’s mission id to provide air and sealift support to the National Science Foundation and US Antarctic Program.

There is no sunlight in Antarctica for several months of the year, from around late March to the middle of August. The night vision goggle concept will make it easier and safer for C-17 aircrews to get into Antarctica any time of the year.

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Top 10 Light Planes

10. Mooney M20 – Manufactured in 1955 with wooden wing spars that required lots of inspections to keep in airworthy condition, the Mooney M20 quickly became an all-metal aircraft. Different variants of the family were produced in three fuselage lengths and the M20’s engine power and cruise speed grew until it became the fastest production piston single available. Some 52 years after the Mooney M20 first flew it is still in production as the Mooney M20TN Acclaim.

9. de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk – The Chipmunk was the first aircraft produced by the de Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited. The fully aerobatic Chipmunk first flew in 1946 and soon became the primary trainer of the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Royal Air Force and smaller air forces worldwide.

8. Fieseler Fi 156 Storch – First produced in 1936, the Fi 156 quickly became known as the Storch because of its long undercarriage legs, its wide cockpit and its large wings made it look like a long-legged bird. The Storch was the Luftwaffe’s standard liaison and spotting plane during the Second World War and became famous for its amazing short-takeoff-and-landing performance.

7. Yakolev Yak-18 – The Yakolev Yak-18 entered service in 1946 as the primary two-seat trainer for the Soviet Air Forces. The early Yak-18A was built in large numbers and later versions were developed as aerobatic and light transport aircraft.

6. Boeing Stearman – Stearman became a subsidiary of Boeing in 1934, began building its Model 75 biplane basic trainer in the early 1930s. The U.S. Army Air Force adopted the rugged and reliable aircraft as a primary trainer, the Kaydet, and the aircraft also became a basic trainer for the U.S. Navy.

5. Piper PA-29 Cherokee – Manufactured in 1960, the four-seat, all-metal PA-28 Cherokee is still being produced 47 years later. One of the most recreational and touring single-engine piston aircraft of the modern era, the Cherokee became a family of models with over a dozen members, the Cherokee 140 and the Saratoga II.

4. Beechcraft Bonanza – The Beechcraft Bonanza made its first appearance in 1945 as the model 35. From 1959 until 1995 Beech also produced another version of the Bonanza, the model 33 Debonair.

3. de Havilland Tiger Moth – Derived from the earlier de Havilland Gipsy Moth, the elegant DH-82 Tiger Moth biplane was developed in the 1930s and became the standard primary trainer for the Royal Air Force and the air forces of most of other Commonwealth countries throughout the Second World War.

2. Piper Cub, PA-11 and Super Cub – Developed from the 1930 Taylor E-2 Cub by Piper, the two-seat Piper J-3 Cub taildragger became the primary trainer of the U.S. Civilian Pilot Training Program and four-fifths of all U.S. military pilots in the Second World War received their initial flight training in the type.

1. Cessna 172 Skyhawk – The most-produced light aircraft in history, the Cessna Skyhawk first appeared in 1956 and is still in volume production today. Dozens of versions of the Cessna 172 and the closely related Cessna 175 have been produced in the U.S. and in France. Offering a high-wing design, a low stall speed and a high degree of stability at low speeds, the Cessna 172 is an excellent search-and-rescue aircraft and forms the backbone of the Civil Air Patrol in the United States. The type is also operated by many air forces throughout the world.

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Russian Tupolev Tu-160s Land in Venezuela

MOSCOW, Russia – Russia downplayed the two Tu-160 Blackjack strategic long-range bombers that flew to Venezuela on Thursday in the first such flight since the Cold War, saying the bombers carried no live weapons (nuclear or otherwise) and would turn back to Russia next week.

Russian analysts said it was the first time strategic bombers have landed in the Western Hemisphere since the Cold War. The foray, and the coming military exercises with an avowed US enemy, is like to strain the tense relationship between Moscow and Washington.

The Tu-160 bombers arrived in South America ahead of planned joint military maneuvers between Russia and Venezuela – maneuvers that appear to be a tit-for-tat retort to the United States for sending warships to deliver air to U.S. allied Georgia following last month’s war.

Russian Air Force Maj. Gen. Pavel Androsov said in televised comment that the Tu-160s were only carrying test missiles. The jets would conduct several test flights over neutral waters then return to Russia on Monday. That indicates that the jets would not participate in military exercise that Venezuela and Russia plan to hold in the Caribbean Sea sometime this year.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said he had ordered the Tu-160s to make the flight at the invitation of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who has expressed interest in flying the massive bombers.

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Military Model Planes offers more than 1,000 variations of planes used by the U.S. Government branches such as the Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, Army, government departments and more of other nations. Aside from military model planes, commercial airplanes, helicopters, ships, NASA models and wall plaques are found here. Replicas of your own airplane can also be done, precise and accurate measuring and duplication will be instantly at work. High-quality results will meet your personal specifications.

The world class quality of the model planes Military Model Planes offer are more than collectibles, gifts, souvenirs and sculptures but a representation of great pride and victorious achievements.

Rocket Fuel Experiment Blows Up

A retired NASA engineer, Jim Akkerman, looking to develop an inexpensive way for people to travel to space goes back to square one after one of his experiments exploded Saturday, September 6. No one was injured and no property was damaged at the accident in Hitchcock, located about 40 miles southeast of Houston.

Too much methane-oxygen fuel mixture accumulated in the rocket engine when the engine wouldn’t fire causing the explosion, said police Chief Glenn Manis. Authorities said Akkerman committed no crime, however, Akkerman – president of Houston-based Advent Launch Services could not immediately be reached for comment Sunday.

Advent is trying to develop a spacecraft that launches vertically from water and lands horizontally like a seaplane. The winged rocket is designed to glide down to the ocean surface for a safe, controlled landing.

“We believe that creating a low-cost, reliable delivery system will lead to more commercially viable space programs,” according to the company’s web site.

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Pilot Error Blamed for Fatal F-15 Collision

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Two inexperienced F-15C Eagle pilots made errors that caused a fatal mid-air collision during a combat training mission over the Gulf of Mexico, Air Force investigators concluded in a report released Monday.

Both pilots misjudged how close they were to each other and had less than two seconds to react before Capt. Tucker Hamilton’s wing sliced into 1^st Lt. Ali Jivanjee’s cockpit in the Feb. 20 accident, investigators said.

“The cause of this mishap was pilot error. Both men failed to clear their flight paths and did not recognize their impending high-aspect, mid-air collision,” said Brig. Gen. Joseph Reynes, the head of the seven-member Air Force Accident Investigation Board.

Jivanjee, 26, of San Dimas, California died instantly. Hamilton, who is now assigned to a non-flying position in Germany, ejected with minor injuries. The single-seat fighter planes were destroyed – an $ 83 million loss for the Air Force.

The report said both pilots did not have enough time flying the F-15 to be experienced in the aircraft. Jivanjee had fewer than 120 hours of flight time in the aircraft and Hamilton had flown it just under the required 500 hours, the report said.

Investigators said they found no mechanical or structural problems in the two, nearly 30-year-old fighter jets, which were part of the Air Force’s aging and problem-plagued F-15 fleet. The 1979 and 1981 F-15s flown by the two Eglin Air Force Base pilots were in good condition, Reynes said.

The Air Force largely grounded its F-15 fleet from Nov. 3, 2007, to Jan. 10 after an F-15 broke apart in mid-air over Missouri. An investigation found that 160 of the Air Force’s nearly 700 F-15s had defects. Last month, another F-15 crashed and killed one pilot during a training mission over the Nevada desert.

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