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| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | February 6, 1991 (1991-02-06) |
| Summary | Dual engine separation; subsequent emergency landing |
| Site | Near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| Aircraft | |
 58-0013, seen here on November 4, 2004 | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker |
| Operator | United States Air Force |
| Call sign | WHALE 05 |
| Registration | 58-0013 |
| Flight origin | Prince Abdullah Air Base, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| Destination | Prince Abdullah Air Base, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| Occupants | 4 |
| Crew | 4 |
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Survivors | 4 |
On February 6, 1991, a USAF Boeing KC-135 military aircraft, operating as U.S. Air Force Flight WHALE 05, took off from Prince Abdullah Air Base, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, while en route on a Gulf War refueling mission. However, shortly after, the aircraft lost engines 1 and 2 while flying over the Saudi Arabian desert and to counteract the plane's descent, the pilots begin to dump fuel from the aircraft. During the landing in Jeddah, due to the damage of the engines to the hydraulic system, most of the descent was in manual mode, the captain's experience was key to the approach of the plane in the state it was in. The aircraft, not having thrust reversers, overshot the landing strip, and finally the four occupants on board landed safely the air base.
Crew
The crew consisted of:
- Captain Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Sweeney
- First Officer Greg Mermis
- Steve Stucky
- Jay Selanders
Aircraft
The aircraft involved was a Boeing KC-135E, it was manufactured in 1959 with serial number 17758 and made its first flight on February 19 of that same year.
Incident
WHALE 05 was scheduled for take off from Jeddah at 17:24 local time and climb to 25,000 feet (7,600 m) for aerial refueling. Another Boeing KC-135 took off at around the same time and was supposed to fly the same route. The co-pilot was in charge of the maneuvers and climbed to the planned altitude of 25,000 feet (7,600 m). After climbing, it was moved to level flight by autopilot, and was about 1 nautical mile away from the other KC-135 flying ahead. Approximately 45 minutes after takeoff, WHALE05 encountered forward wake turbulence. Immediately after that, the aircraft suddenly banked more than 90 degrees to the left, and within a few seconds it banked more than 90 degrees to the right. The captain activated the speed brakes and restored the aircraft to a nearly horizontal position. During the sequence of events, the first and second left wing engines fell off. After recovery, the fire alarms on the two left side engines were activated. The captain ordered the boom operator to look at the engine, and he reported that there was no fire but that the engine had fallen. Not much time had passed since takeoff, when the aircraft was left with almost 31,000 gallons of fuel. In addition, the hydraulic reception, fuel pumps, and landing gear were damaged when the engines fell, and all the fuel was spilled from the left wing. To maintain the altitude and speed of fuel discharge carried out, the captain declared "Mayday" and decided to return to Jeddah. The aircraft returned to level flight at 16,000 feet (4,900 m) and the pilots checked the operation of the device. After verification, the pilot arrived at Price Abdullah Air Base one hour and 15 minutes later. Since the hydraulic system had been damaged, landing gear deployment was done manually. The pilot requested to land on runway 34L because it was the longest and made an instrument landing system (ILS) approach. The aircraft landed about 300 m (1,000 ft) from the edge of the runway. Upon landing, the pilot deployed a third engine thrust reverser, but immediately discontinued its use due to difficulty in directional control. Although a plurality of tires were damaged, the aircraft stopped on the runway.
Investigation
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At first, since it was a tanker plane in the Gulf War, it was thought to be intentional, although that did not make sense with what was found with the wing and engines of the plane that were recovered. The plane's thrust reversers were in place, so it was thought that this had removed them from the plane, although this was not the case. The plane had turned 110 degrees to the right and then to the left very quickly, it was discovered that another KC-135 was a few miles away, which led to the discovery that it was a powerful wake turbulence with a lot of G force that caused the the incident, although he did not feel sorry for not taking one more turn, since if this happened the other two right engines would have also come off.
The second plane, taking off before the first, changed the designated order. The wake turbulence of the second plane when passing it caused the G forces to move the plane with oscillation, making it stable again thanks to the coordination of the team and the cunning of the captain. The pilots and crew earned credit for knowing what to do in the situation. After this, the Boeing KC-135 was repaired and returned to military service, being able to fly for another 13 years. It is currently stored at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group.
Dramatization
The incident was featured in the seventh episode of the twenty-first season of the Canadian show Mayday: Air Disasters, titled "Mission Disaster."
References
- ^ Ranter, Harro. "Accident Boeing KC-135E Stratotanker 58-0013, Wednesday 6 February 1991". asn.flightsafety.org. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- Gilliand, Bill (13 October 2010). "The Desert: Part Three". 190th Air Refueling Wing. Fuerza Aérea de los Estados Unidos. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
- "25th Anniversary of Desert Storm: Grissom Airmen share their story". Grissom Air Reserve Base. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
- "Gen. Mick Baier: 190th Air Refueling Wing expected one in five losses in Gulf War - News - The Topeka Capital-Journal - Topeka, KS". web.archive.org. 2021-05-17. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- Leone, Dario (2017-01-30). "KNOWN AND UNKNOWN FACTS OF THE KC-135 STRATOTANKER PARTICIPATION IN OPERATION DESERT STORM". The Aviation Geek Club. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- "Lt. Colonel Kevin Sweeney Receives Honor From General Charles Horner". www.newswire.com. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- KSNGMuseum (2013-07-19). "190th Air Refueling Wing". Kansas National Guard Museum. Retrieved 2025-01-14.
- "Air Crash Investigation" Mission Disaster (TV Episode 2021) ⭐ 7.7 | Documentary, Crime, History. Retrieved 2025-01-14 – via m.imdb.com.