A pair of Air Force Reserve Command F-16s from JB Fort Worth, Texas, collided just after touching down on the runway at Nellis AFB, Nev., at approximately 11:20 a.m. local time Aug. 15, according to a release from Nellis officials. The 301st Fighter Wing pilots were flying a local familiarization sortie ahead of Exercise Red Flag 15-4, which got underway on Monday, a base spokesman told Air Force Magazine. The pilots were taken to a hospital for medical evaluation; the officials are convening an accident investigation board to probe the mishap. The previous iteration of Red Flag wrapped up July 31, with B-2 bombers and some of the “most robust” integration of special operations forces in recent years, 414th Combat Training Squadron ops direction Maj. William Lutmer said in a rel?ease. Red Flag 15-3 also included F-16s conducting a unique combat search and rescue support role. “It is the first time in over two years that we have had qualified sandy pilots and it has made a big difference in the level of personnel recovery training we have been able to accomplish,” he added.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.