X-Wind Problem
Not near as spectacular as the F-106, but we had an unusual accident in VA-44, the A-4 RAG @ Cecil in the late '60s. The Pilot, an RP returning from a training flight, was faced with crosswinds approaching the 15 kt, max crosswind component limit on the A-4C. On his first approach, he elected to waveoff just prior to touchdown due to excessive drift (gusty winds). On his second approach, he touched down & while decelerating through less than 90 kts, a strong gust sent him skidding port wing down, toward the side of the runway. As the A/C headed off the runway, he ejected. Several of us witnessed the ejection from a large ready room window overlooking the duty runway.
The ejection started normally...canopy left, rocket propelled the seat up & forward, but seat/man separation never occurred. Tragically, the seat w/ Pilot slammed into the ground and was fatal. It was horrible to watch, I remember several of us yelling
"open, open, open..."!
The Scooter skidded through the weeds for several hundred yards, shedding drop tanks, and slid to a relatively gentle stop. The engine was still running when the crash crew arrived. There was only moderate damage and that A/C was repaired and flew again. A seat separation malfunction was determined to be the cause of the fatality.
I was never privy to the AAR, but I felt (after the fact) there were other options available which might have prevented that accident, such as another wave off, duty runway shift, divert to NAS Jax or other airfield, short field arrestment, etc. Very sad!:icon_conf
BzB