[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 17470]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                       COMMENDING A NAVAL AVIATOR

  Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, I would like to take this opportunity to 
commend a constituent of mine from Fort Collins, Colorado--Lieutenant 
Commander Carl Oesterle, an F-18 pilot on the air craft carrier U.S.S. 
Constellation. Colorado is a state blessed with a large number of 
dedicated active duty personnel and retired military, and as a member 
of the Armed Services Committee I like to take the opportunity to 
commend our personnel when they conduct themselves in a top notch 
manner.
  I am sure that LCDR Oesterle would insist that he was doing nothing 
more than his duty on June 23, while participating in a night training 
mission in the Pacific. But his actions in salvaging his seriously 
disabled fighter by conducting an emergency landing on the 
Constellation demonstrate the excellent training and dedication of our 
nation's fighter pilots. The episode is outlined very well in a July 9, 
article in the Washington Times and I ask unanimous consent that this 
article be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

               [From the Washington Times, July 9, 1999]

                     Inside the Ring--Navy Heroics

                 (By Bill Gertz and Rowan Scarborough)

       The Navy aviation community is buzzing over the heroics of 
     an F-18C pilot on the carrier USS Constellation, or 
     ``Connie'' to her friends.
       On June 23, as the pilot catapulted off the deck in the 
     Pacific for a night mission, he experienced twin engine 
     problems blamed on the dreaded ingestion of foreign objects, 
     such as a metal washer or shirt button, that sometimes miss 
     detection on deck, according to a Navy source.
       The $35 million strike fighter was so crippled, aviators on 
     the Connie thought the pilot would quickly bail out.
       But instead of taking the easy way, the pilot stuck with 
     the plane, coaxing its altitude up to 80 feet, then 150 as he 
     jettisoned fuel.
       Meanwhile, the ship's crew scurried to erect netting, 
     called a barricade, to trap the aircraft if the pilot could 
     achieve enough speed and altitude to manhandle it into 
     landing position.
       His first pass was high. On a second try, as tension grew 
     and the landing signal officer barked commands via radio, the 
     pilot hit the barricade dead center. the ship erupted in 
     cheers.
       ``Everyone on the platform was hugging and almost in 
     tears,'' said an officer who helped the pilot to safety. 
     ``Our prayer was definitely answered as Oyster (the pilot's 
     nickname) popped open the canopy and hopped out of the jet.''
       What motivated the pilot to risk his life to save the 
     plane?
       A naval pilot in Washington offered this: ``It's long been 
     a question in flying circles on when to make the 
     determination it's time to eject. With today's zero-defect-
     mentality and second-guessing. There's tremendous pressure 
     for a guy to stay with the airplane. It's a tough call.''
       Cmdr. Dave Koontz, a Navy spokesman in San Diego, could not 
     confirm that the pilot encountered double engine problems. He 
     said one engine failed and the Navy has started an inquiry to 
     find out why.
       ``You're trained to handle emergencies and there is a 
     variety of emergencies that come up,'' said Cmdr. Koontz, a 
     former helicopter pilot who served on the Constellation. ``I 
     personally think what he did was pretty heroic.''

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