U.S. Navy T-6B Texan II Aircraft Crashes in Alabama, Two Pilots Killed
A U.S. Navy T-6B Texan II turboprop trainer aircraft crashed in Magnolia Springs just west of Foley, Alabama, at approximately 5 p.m. CST on Oct. 23 killing both the pilots.
According to Naval Air Forces spokesman Commander Zach Harrell, the aircraft took off from Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Florida. Whiting Field is a primary initial training location for Navy aviators and is approximately 100 miles northeast of the crash site.
A house and several cars caught fire at the crash site but the Navy confirmed that there were no civilian causalities from the incident. A Navy statement said that the names of the deceased will not be released until 24 hours after the next-of-kin notification.
T-6B Crash in Foley, AL:
A U.S. Navy T-6B Texan II aircraft crashed in Foley, Alabama, at approximately 5 p.m. CST today. The aircrew did not survive the crash. The names of the deceased will not be released until 24 hours after the next-of-kin notification.— flynavy (@flynavy) October 24, 2020
UPDATE on T-6B Crash: We have confirmed that no civilians have been injured as a result of this mishap. Navy personnel are on scene and cooperating with local authorities to secure the area and ensure the safety of the local community
— flynavy (@flynavy) October 24, 2020
The T-6B Texan II is a tandem-seat, turboprop trainer whose primary mission is to train Navy and Marine Corps pilots. It is an upgraded avionics variant of the T-6A Texan II and one component of the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) along with simulators, computer-aided academics, and a Training Integration Management System (TIMS), replacing the T-34C aircraft.
The T-6 aircraft, built by Hawker Beechcraft Aircraft Company, is a derivative of the Swiss Pilatus PC-9 aircraft with a Pratt & Whitney PT-6A-68 engine, Martin-Baker ejection seats, cockpit pressurization, and an onboard oxygen-generating system (OBOGS).
There are currently 200+ Navy T-6Bs serving the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) at NAS Whiting Field and NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. Six additional T-6B aircraft are stationed at the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School (USNTPS) in NAS Patuxent River, Maryland.