AF pilot charged for Nago landing

[unhappycamper]

AF pilot charged for Nago landing
By David Allen and Chiyomi Sumida, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, March 12, 2009

NAHA, Okinawa — Okinawa police have forwarded charges against the Air Force pilot of a Cessna 172 that made an emergency landing Oct. 24 on Okinawa after running out of fuel.

A police spokesman said Tuesday the pilot, an unnamed lieutenant colonel, is suspected of negligence and failing to file a flight plan with local authorities. Custody of the suspect has not been sought.

An Air Force investigation into the incident found that the pilot of the plane owned by the Kadena Aero Club was forced to land in a sugarcane field in a rural area of Nago. The 45-year-old pilot failed to properly gauge how much fuel was needed for a round-trip flight from Kadena Air Base to Amami Island, the report stated.

The plane developed engine failure and struck several power lines during the emergency landing, according to police. The pilot and three passengers were not seriously injured.

The Aero Club was grounded for more than a month while the 18th Wing devised new safety measures that require mandatory refueling on all islands more than 90 minutes from Kadena and paying greater attention to preflight paperwork.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=61259