U.S. F-16 jets involved in deadly training accident in New Mexico, officials say
ALAMOGORDO, N.M. -- A civilian contractor was killed and an Air Force service member injured in a training accident on a military range in southern New Mexico, Holloman Air Force Base officials said Wednesday.
The Tuesday night accident involved members of a ground-control party struck as two F-16 jets used unspecified air-to-ground munitions at a range that’s part of the White Sands Missile Range complex near Holloman, base officials said in a statement.
Members of a ground-control party are controllers who provide guidance to military aircraft, including fighters attacking ground targets.
The statement said the injured service member was released from a hospital after treatment for unspecified injuries.
The identities of those involved were not immediately released, and officials say the incident is under investigation.
It was not immediately known what type of munitions was involved.
The F-16 first became operational in the late 1970s and is a multi-role fighter that can drop bombs, fire missiles and shoot cannon shells in missions that can include aerial combat and attacking ground targets. There are one- and two-seat versions.
The statement says the aircraft are based at Holloman but belong to a unit, the 54th Fighter Group, that is part of the 56th Fighter Wing headquartered at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona.
