Today has been a sad day in San Diego. A Navy pilot was training in his F-18 Hornet off of the aircraft carrier USS Lincoln out in the Pacific. The FA-18 is the same plane used by the “Blue Angels”. The Pilot developed some sort of mechanical problems and lost an engine. It was about the same distance back to the carrier as it was to Miramar so rather than try a precarious landing on the carrier he radioed that he needed to make an emergency landing at Miramar. He came in about a hundred miles on one engine and lost this second engine just two miles short of the runway. Some of you may remember Miramar as the “Top Gun” Navy pilot training school made famous in the movie “Top Gun”. 
Yes, it is a real place and I’ve worked within a mile of the training base since the day I moved to San Diego. I love to hear the jets go overhead as they’re training. The pilot was able to bail out at the last second (literally) and was OK but the plane crashed onto a city street, slid through one house, crossed the street and slide through a second house, went through it and ended up in the Rose Canyon behind that house. We obviously don’t know everything yet but the story being told is that when the pilot realized he wasn’t going to make the runway he tried to aim for the canyon.Unfortunately he came down two houses short.I had an optometrist appointment and when I stepped out of our building a little after noon to head for my appointment I could see the smoke just a mile or two away. I heard the story on the car radio. The initial report was that the pilot was OK and that no one on the ground was hurt. It came out about an hour later however that there was a family in the first house hit. A young mother had a toddler and a brand new baby. The girls’ mother had come to stay with her for a while to help take care of the new baby. They’ve found the bodies of the mother, the grandmother and one of her two sons but the other child is still missing. The poor father was at work. I can’t even imagine loosing my entire family all in one instant like that. The poor man.
4 comments:
Dean told me about this. He had heard on the news and asked me if you had reported anything on your blog yet. So sad!
I feel for those who lose such a GREAT deal at this time of year. It's horrible to have the anniversary of this year after year, but to have it at the Christmas season, must be worse. The Lord must really know what he is doing to call them back home for Christmas. But it will be SO hard for those left behind.
I wonder if you heard about the recent Tragedies in Rosemary this past weekend. Levi Smith and his girlfriend's home burnt. Totally gutted, while they slept. Levi just graduated a couple of years ago. They lived in the renovated old Bakery two story building. Mom says that, thankfully it was a brick building that kept the fire contained like in a big chimney. Otherwise all of down town would have been on fire.
And Mr. Fred Penner lost control on the icy roads and lost his life this weekend as well. Our little town of Rosemary is a little more quiet this week.
I just heard today that the pilot tried to avoid the houses and stayed with the plane until he was only 25 feet above the ground. That is so sad about the Smiths and the Penners. I hadn't heard.
I had heard about this. I can't even imagine! Do I remember Fred Penner? The name sounds very familiar.
Kira you are probably thinking of the "Fred Penner" from the children's show you used to watch.
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