Grampaw Pettibone.

Galloping Goshawk

A student naval aviator (SNA) was scheduled as a solo for a day two-plane formation flight. After a brief with the lead instructor pilot and a weather brief, the pilot went to maintenance control, reviewed the aircraft discrepancy book, signed for the jet, and conducted a normal preflight. Takeoff, join up, and all formation maneuvers were uneventful. The IP led the SNA back to home field and into the break. As previously briefed, the IP landed and the SNA remained in the pattern for touch and go's. Approaching squadron standard operating procedures for minimum fuel, the SNA called for a full stop and was cleared to land.

The SNA touched down and applied braking after rolling about 1,000 feet but did not feel normal deceleration. Thinking that the brakes had malfunctioned, the SNA decided to turn off the anti-skid and reapply braking. With about 4,000 feet of runway remaining, the SNA reapplied the brakes, which locked up. After 300 feet of further travel, the left tire blew causing the left mainmount to ride on the wheel rim. Two seconds later, the mishap aircraft began a hard left swerve and began tracking directly toward the edge of the runway.

Deciding that the left swerve could not be controlled and with the edge of the runway looming, the SNA ejected. The jet departed the runway with 3,200 feet of runway remaining. The aircraft rolled right until the right wingtip hit the ground, yawed almost 270 degrees to the right, and then rolled left. The jet came to a stop on the left side of the runway, inverted. The SNA suffered minor injuries.

Postflight investigation revealed that during the mishap landing, the power lever was never brought fully to idle. The lack of deceleration was due to the fact that the engine was still producing a significant amount of thrust.

Grampaw Pettibone says:

First things first--this Aspiring Aviator made a few mistakes, but he made one smart decision. Pullin' that handle saved that young 'uns life! When it's time to go, kids, you got to make it happen. When you're in the saddle of a squirrelly steed, you better be ready to get out if she's running sideways for the dirt. Gramps is glad this nobbit got away with nothing but a few bumps and bruises, even if there was a hard lesson learned in the process.