Test Pilot Killed in F-22 Crash

Test Pilot Killed in F-22 Crash: Lockheed Martin test pilot David Cooley, 49, was killed in the March 25 crash of an F-22 stealth fighter about 35 miles northeast of Edwards AFB, Calif., where the aircraft was assigned for test purposes. The Air Force initially released news of the crash that afternoon, and, a few hours later, Lockheed and USAF released news of Cooley's death. According to the company statement, the 21-year Air Force veteran had joined Lockheed in 2003, working at the F-22 Combined Test Force at Edwards, where USAF and company pilots conduct Raptor testing. Maj. Gen. David Eichhorn, commander of the Air Force Flight Test Center which oversees the CTF, said in a USAF release, "This is a very difficult day for Edwards and those who knew and respected Dave as a warrior, test pilot, and friend." Lockheed officials said they "were deeply saddened by the loss of David and our concerns, thoughts, and prayers at this time are with his family." The Air Force is conducting an investigation into the accident, which is the second involving the new F-22 stealth fighter. The first crash, which was at Nellis AFB, Nev., occurred during the 2004 test and evaluation phase; the pilot ejected safely.

3/26/2009

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Preemptive Action
"Since the [Defense] Department's acceptance of the independent estimates last fall, we've been, in just about every respect, acting as if the program were in a Nunn-McCurdy breach. ... We've been taking all of the mitigating and corrective action that we would take as if there were a Nunn-McCurdy breach."
—Air Force Secretary Michael Donley, discussing with reporters the restructure of the F-35 strike fighter program announced in February 2010 and the probability that the program will soon exceed Nunn-McCurdy cost-monitoring thresholds that would necessitate, per US law, a program review and corrective steps, Washington, D.C., March 2, 2010.

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Message for Grandma
"She has working for her as a citizen in the United States an Air Force Reserve that has some very talented, capable, patriotic, and willing individuals doing the business to keep this nation free. Just like her generation—the 'Greatest Generation'—was, I am very proud of the folks that we have got. If not the second greatest, then they are an extension of the greatest generation and they are ready, willing, and able to do the things that she would want them to do to make sure we keep our freedoms."
—Lt. Gen. Charles Stenner, Air Force Reserve chief, responding to a reporter's question on what the reporter should tell his 85-year-old grandmother to convey to her the importance of Air Force Reservists to the nation's security, Orlando, Fla., Feb. 19, 2010.