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Article published: Apr 6, 2006
Shaw F-16 crashes
Pilot's condition unknown after ocean rescue

A Shaw Air Force Base F-16 crashed in the Atlantic Ocean about 5:40 p.m. Wednesday.

The pilot, Capt. Ted Shultz, was rescued by a Coast Guard swimmer about two hours later, but his condition was unknown Wednesday evening.

The jet went down about 30 miles off the coast, between Myrtle Beach and Charleston.

Shultz is a member of the 55th Fighter Squadron. He has 800 flying hours under his belt, 500 of those in the F-16, Shaw Sr. Airman Susan Penning said.

She said he's been stationed at Shaw for two-and-a-half years.

Shultz ejected from the aircraft.

His wingman circled overhead after the crash to mark the spot, Penning said.

RECENT CRASHES

A list of recent crashes involving pilots from Shaw Air Force Base:

  April 18, 2005 — An F-16 crashed in the Ashley River near Charleston. The pilot and an observer, both with 9th Air Force, ejected safely. A report found that maintainers failed to install seals on the turbine blades, which caused the engine to fail.

  July 6, 2001 — Capt. Mitchell August Bulmann of the 77th Fighter Squadron was killed when his aircraft crashed 40 miles off the coast of Charleston.

  March 19, 2000 — Maj. Brison Phillips of the 78th Fighter Squadron was killed when his F-16 crashed while performing in an air show in Kingsville, Texas.

  July 22, 1998 — An F-16 went down over the Atlantic Ocean during a simulated air-to-air combat training mission just off the South Carolina coast. The pilot ejected safely.

  July 11, 1996 — An F-16 crashed into a Pensacola, Fla., home, killing a 4-year-old boy and severely burning a woman in the home. The jet — and 50 others from Shaw — was headed to Florida as part of an evacuation effort because of Hurricane Bertha. The pilot ejected safely  Oct. 27, 1992 — An F-16 crashed into a Sumter County cotton field about a half-mile short of its runway. No one was seriously injured.

  Sept. 13, 1988 — An F-16 crashed into a field behind the Cherryvale residential area after it lost engine thrust. The plane caught a house on fire, killing two men. The pilot ejected safely.

  April 1985 — Shaw pilot Capt. Edgar Johnson Jr. was killed when the F-16 he was flying crashed into a wooded area in Kentucky.

  November 1982 — Shaw's Col. Henry M. Yochum and Maj. Wayne Scott Hagen were killed when their twin-engine O-2 Skymaster went down near the Allendale airport.

  April 1980 — Capt. Donald R. Cook was killed when his twin-engine O-2 Skymaster crashed at the Poinsett Gunnery Range near Wedgefield during a routine flight.

  January 1980 — An RF-4C Phantom jet from Shaw crashed in Boykin. Another RF-C Phantom from Shaw had gone down in Holly Hill just four months prior to the crash.

Coast Guard Petty Officer Bobby Nash said a Coast Guard helicopter lowered the swimmer into the ocean to reach the pilot. A Navy warship in the area launched a small vessel, which was able to recover the two and bring them back to the ship, he said.

Once the pilot was stable, the Coast Guard helicopter landed on the Navy ship to transport the pilot to the Medical University of South Carolina, Nash said.

The pilots were participating in a training mission. Shaw pilots regularly fly over the Atlantic Ocean during training. Shaw's training airspace begins just south of Sumter and extends east to Georgetown County. There is also training airspace over the Atlantic Ocean and over rural Georgia.



Contact Staff Writer Leslie Cantu at lesliec@theitem.com or 803-774-1250.
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