Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
(KSL News) -- Air personnel at Hill Air Force Base say pilots are prepared and ready in the event of a crash. The 388th Fighter Wing showed off the talents of its Equipment Maintenance Squadron.
The life support squadron maintain pilots' flight suits, rafts, anti-exposure suits and parachutes. The soldiers say the parachutes are the final safety filter for a pilot if they have to eject from an aircraft.
Jacoby Bruner, 388th Fighter Wing, U.S. Air Force: "It's the last resort pretty much. If that shoot fails, then that's it, he has no reserve."
The Air Force says that equipment maintenance helped save a pilot who crashed near the Great Salt Lake. The pilot ejected from an FW F-16 over Carrington Island in March. The Air Force says a mechanical error caused the crash, but the pilot made it out safely.
