Author Topic: 'Missile error' led to RAF deaths (Read 725 times)

Nilsen · « **Reply #15 on:** April 09, 2004, 09:55:06 AM »

lasersailor184l..

how do you know that the IFF transponder was not on?

Naso · « **Reply #16 on:** April 09, 2004, 09:59:37 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by lasersailor184
Listen, in every modern day plane there is an IFF coder. What you do is send a message to the plane, if it's friendly, it will send a message back.

If i'm flying over a friendly Military that's the most powerful in the world, the IFF coder is the first thing i would check.

Then I would check the ejection seat.

I dont know who is to blame for this accident, but for sure there's nothing to have fun since someone lost his life.

lasersailor184 · « **Reply #17 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:02:00 AM »

That's the point Naso. The most important thing on that plane was the IFF decoder.

Plus I think (not sure though), that some of the Patriot missile sights won't work when the IFF decoder isn't working. They only shot down one friendly that we know of. That means that there were other friendlies in the sky that weren't shot down by this site.

lasersailor184 · « **Reply #18 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:06:57 AM »

No, i'm not saying they are wrong or are to blame. Crap happens in war.

However, I know that if I was in an Air Group, the IFF decoder would be the most important part of my plane.

AKIron · « **Reply #19 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:14:07 AM »

All radar data can be and likely was recorded. You can bet that this will be/was looked at during the investigation.

Nilsen · « **Reply #20 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:23:52 AM »

Again lasersailor...

how do you know the transponder was not on?

AKIron · « **Reply #21 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:30:43 AM »

I just reread that article. It borders on dishonesty. It doesn't claim that there is a fault in that specific system but implies it. They blame the crew of that system for using it while knowing that all Patriot systems are faulty.

The US Army stated that the plane that was shot down was not transmitting an IFF signal.

This sort of manipulative bs has no other purpose than to divide. Anyone not see that?

Replicant · « **Reply #22 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:36:59 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by GScholz
Indeed. What I find strange is that the Patriot battery was the only platform that detected the Tornado as hostile. That is an assumption on my part, but I think other planes and SAM sites would come forward and corroborate the Patriot crew's story if the Tornado IFF was malfunctioning/switched off/wrong code.

The Tornado wasn't alone either, it was flying in formation with another aircraft.

I guess it was a faulty IFF on the F16 that got locked on too?

Stringer · « **Reply #23 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:43:02 AM »

What's the point of this thread again?

Hortlund · « **Reply #24 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:46:52 AM »

Same as all threads started by the pacifists...to whine about the evil americans and/or make excuses for the terrorists...er I mean freedom fighters/partisans.

Torque · « **Reply #25 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:54:35 AM »

Yeah the redundant Tampon commerical.

Nilsen · « **Reply #26 on:** April 09, 2004, 10:55:54 AM »

I would think that there would be ALOT of allied sensors where the brits were flying (all the way form takeoff and onwards) including those that flew with the tornado. IF the patriot battery was the only system that did not register the IFF then I would guess it is to blame either by bad software or operator error. The fact that the brits were also detected as a balistic missile indicates that the brits was not at fault.

HOWEVER:.. the important thing is not to blame anyone but to find out if it was indeed the british who forgot to engage the IFF transponder, a faulty transponder or some problem with that or all patriot systems to prevent it from happening again.

Another possibility may be that the IFF transpoder code on the tornado was known only to its units and the RAF anb was for some reason not "given" to the americans. If that is the case the tornado would also have had to take off from a british controled base and have flown in british "sectors".

Scootter · « **Reply #27 on:** April 10, 2004, 04:38:00 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by AKIron
I just reread that article. It borders on dishonesty. It doesn't claim that there is a fault in that specific system but implies it. They blame the crew of that system for using it while knowing that all Patriot systems are faulty.

The US Army stated that the plane that was shot down was not transmitting an IFF signal.

This sort of manipulative bs has no other purpose than to divide. Anyone not see that?

Rightttt eeee ooooo that’s what I implied in my (the 2nd in this string) post. Just not enough info (facts) but a whole lot of spin and hope for blame.

Bottom line is stuff happens that is not pleasant in a war, even training people get killed, this is news?

I am sorry they were shot down, I'm very sure it was not on deliberate. Think how the battery operators feel guys.

Nilsen · « **Reply #28 on:** April 10, 2004, 04:40:57 PM »

well said scootter

Replicant · « **Reply #29 on:** April 10, 2004, 06:15:11 PM »

I read this in todays newspaper:

FURY erupted on Friday night after it was revealed that US soldiers who killed an RAF crew KNEW their missile system was faulty.

The US army Patriot accidentally shot down an RAF Tornado at the beginning of the Iraq war. Pilot Flight Lieutenant David Williams and Flt Lt Kevin Main died.

US soldiers had repeatedly “locked on” to British and American warplanes by mistake yet had not fired, an inquiry revealed. On Friday night Tory defence spokesman Gerald Howarth demanded that the results of the probe should be made public.

He said: “We need to know if there is something wrong with Patriot or whether this was a one-off mistake.”

The inquiry established that the Patriot missile battery identified the Tornado as an enemy shell.

I haven't a clue how true it is but if the probe is made public then we'll all know. At least the inquiry will determine what the faults were so that they can be rectified in future.