The crew of an Israeli air force F-15 warplane fought freezing temperatures and buffeting winds to bring their aircraft down after its cockpit canopy flew off at 30,000 feet, the military said on Monday.

In a dramatic cockpit voice recording of the January 2 incident airmen can be heard shouting to one another over the roaring wind and engine noise, in what a military statement said were temperatures of -45 degrees Celsius (-49 Fahrenheit).

"Are you all right," the navigator asks the pilot, identified in the statement as "captain Y".

"Yes I'm fine," he replies.

"We are without a canopy, proceeding for landing at the nearest base," the pilot says over the radio in a calm voice.

He then notifies controllers he is heading to Nevatim air base in southern Israel.

The landing went without further incident, the statement said, adding that the air force chief of staff ordered an immediate halt to training flights in F-15s pending an investigation.

Haaretz newspaper said the air force has had a fleet of US-made F-15s since the 1970s and it had been considered the country's top warplane until it began taking delivery of the US F-35 stealth fighter in December 2016.

Related Links
Aerospace News at SpaceMart.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Pinnacle Systems tapped by Air Force for KC-10 training systems
Washington (UPI) Jan 2, 2019
Pinnacle Solutions Inc. was awarded a modification to exercise the fourth year on a previous contract to service KC-10 training systems, the Defense Department announced this week. The contract, announced Monday by the Pentagon, extends Pinnacle's support for a fourth year and brings the value of the previously announced contract to $100.5 million. The company, headquartered in Huntsville, Ala., trains KC-10 crew members with full-motion flight simulators, a non-motion simulator and boom ... read more