C-130 Hercules vs Runway Construction

[Timmeh]

Ok, I get alot of aircraft incident and accident reports in my job (in the Air Force, I train Hornet pilots), but this one stood out, so I thought I'd share it:

Here's what happens when you don't properly "NOTAM" (notice to airmen) an airfield under construction. A lack of communication over in Iraq.

A C-23 Sherpa flew into a U.S. operated airfield in Iraq during the day and saw there was construction equipment on the runway. Yet there was no NOTAM. A trench was being dug in the runway, and it was not marked.

It's a long runway and they just landed beyond the construction. They filed a safety hazard report that was immediately forwarded to our higher headquarters and to the Air Force wing based here.

Well, it seems the construction continued and still was not marked or NOTAM'ed or anything. A C-130 (Hercules) landed on the runway the night of the 29th and didn't see the construction. It wound up going through what is now a large pit on the runway. A few pictures are attached. The C-130 was totalled.

There were several injuries to the crew and the few passengers that were on board but luckily nobody was killed. Quite the set of failures somewhere in the system regarding this improper construction and no notifications about it.











Incredible waste of aircraft and potential loss of life. Just goes to show in my field of work, the smallest slip of mind, forgetting to do something, or being lazy or just plain stupid, has the very real potential to kill.

Tim