An investigation into last September’s mid-air collision between two Air Force A-10 ground attack planes during training in Nevada has found that one of the pilots accidentally flew into space designated for the other pilot.
A pilot flying the first A-10 climbed to the same altitude as a second A 10, which was being flown by an instructor pilot who could not see the first plane coming, according to a release from Air Combat Command.
“Pilot one climbed above the assigned altitude block during a series of commands and did not hear the audible notification signaling the altitude climb and therefore did not radio-in to deconflict,” the accident report reads.
The two planes collided, rendering both uncontrollable and forcing the pilots to eject.
The pilots, who were not named in the ACC release, suffered only minor injuries, but the two A-10s were destroyed at a cost of more than $30 million.
An accident investigation board official listed the cause of the accident as an “unintentional failure to adhere to established altitude deconfliction procedures,” but also cited other factors including, “task over-saturation, misperception of changing environment, and breakdown in visual scan and environmental conditions affecting vision.”
The pilots were conducting a night, close-air support training mission Sept. 6 as part of the Weapons Instructor Course qualification for the first pilot at the Nevada Test and Training Range.
