Unqualified F-35 Pilot At the Controls During Utah National Guard Apache Crash, Investigation Reveals | Aviation

An F-35 pilot with only 35 minutes of experience in an Apache simulator was flying the Utah National Guard Apache that crashed earlier this year.

On Feb. 12, 2024, a Utah National Guard AH-64D Apache helicopter crashed during an “orientation flight”. The helicopter was piloted by a colonel in the Air Force Reserve who was not qualified to fly the aircraft. The colonel, an F-35 fighter jet pilot, had only 35 minutes of experience in an Apache simulator before taking control of the real helicopter for a 90-minute flight. According to an investigative report obtained by FOX 13 News, the crash occurred when the colonel, unfamiliar with helicopter controls, attempted to hover and land the Apache at West Jordan airport.

Investigators revealed that during the return to the airport, the colonel struggled to manage the helicopter, necessitating intervention by the accompanying chief warrant officer on three separate occasions. On the fourth attempt, the colonel panicked and reverted to his fixed-wing training, applying downward pressure inappropriate for a rotor-wing aircraft. The Apache rotated and dropped approximately ten feet to the ground before the chief warrant officer could regain control.

The chief warrant officer sustained minor injuries, while the colonel suffered more serious but…