Republic F-84E Thunderjet # 49-2199 crashed 18 November 1953, 2 miles
west of Dateland
Summary: A flight of four F-84 Thunderjets
departed Luke AFB for an air-to-ground gunnery mission on targets south of
Dateland, Arizona. As he was getting ready for his first firing pass, Major
Harms reached down to reposition his gun switch to "Guns" as he began a turn
into the target. He instantly felt an abrupt thump and experienced some loss of
control of the aircraft. His flight leader radioed him and advised, "You have a
tip tank lodged in your tail!" A quick check revealed he had accidentally mistook the tip tank jettison for the gun switch.
He flew maneuvers for 30 minutes trying to
dislodge the tip tank, but to no avail. Even the group Operations Officer made
four attempts to dislodge it with his aircraft. When his fuel became dangerously
low, Major Harms was forced to eject.
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| The F-84 impact point. |
Wreckage is spread over a few hundred feet. |
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| Instrument components. |
Bent instrument and needle. |
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| Scattered debris. |
More debris. |
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| Parts near the impact point. |
An access door. |
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| Cockpit data plates. |
Close-up of an instrument face. |
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| Turbine blades. |
Pitot tube. |
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| Part number confirms aircraft. |
Part of the instrument dash. |
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| Instrument casing. |
More scattered debris. |
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