A canopy mounted camera captured a Thunderbird pilot’s escape, parachute deployment and the F-16’s fiery impact within seconds. Investigators blamed an engine flaw while clearing the pilot and maintenance crews of responsibility.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
- A canopy mounted 360 degree camera recorded a Thunderbird pilot ejecting from an F-16 at less than 500 feet.
- The pilot landed safely by parachute and was treated for minor injuries.
- An investigation blamed an engine flaw and cleared the pilot and maintenance crews of responsibility.
- Thunderbirds pilots routinely use cockpit footage to review formations, flight lines, crowds and landmarks.
The Air Force Thunderbirds are among the most extensively photographed aircraft in the U.S. military.
The Pentagon’s official photography archive contains more than 20,000 photos and 500 videos featuring the demonstration team’s pilots and F-16 jets.
Yet some of the most remarkable images of the Thunderbirds emerged Monday through an unlikely source.
They appeared inside a formal accident investigation report examining the cause of a team jet’s crash last December.
MORE NEWS: Nellis Bids a Historic Final Farewell to Its Last A-10 Warthog
The images came from a 360 degree video camera mounted to the aircraft’s canopy.
When the pilot ejected at less than 500 feet above the ground, small explosive charges sent that canopy upward and away from the stricken jet.
The camera continued recording as the canopy shot into the air. Over a span of only five seconds, it captured the pilot blasting clear of the F-16 from just a few dozen feet away.
Another image, filmed while looking upward through the clear canopy, shows the pilot’s parachute opening in midair.
