The incident occurred Monday at the 82nd Training Wing at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas, but the pilot was attached to the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program that instructs new military pilots from Canada and various European countries.

The pilot was taken to a hospital but died about 12 hours after the incident, which the Air Force is currently investigating.

There have been issues with the ejection seats in Texan IIs, which have been in service for 17 years and are based on the Pilatus PC-9 built under license by Beechcraft. The airplanes were grounded in 2022 after a potential defect was discovered in the Martin-Baker seats’ explosive cartridge, and some were replaced.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on AVweb.

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The delivery was made to support operations at the No.13 Squadron at the Sfax Air Base in Tunisia. 

Textron said in a statement that the delivery contract consists of eight T-6C Texan II advanced military training aircraft, in-country field service and logistics support representatives, program management support, and interim contractor support for the first year. It includes pilot and maintenance personnel training, spare parts, engines, and other aircraft support equipment.

The second T-6C is expected to be delivered before the end of 2022, and the other six will be delivered in 2023. The Tunisian pilots started training at Textron Aviation Defense facilities in Wichita, Kansas, at the end of October.

“Tunisia is the thirteenth nation to acquire the T-6 and has now taken delivery of the 1,001st T-6 manufactured by our team in Wichita,” said Fouad Kasri, director of sales and strategy for Africa and the Middle East, Textron Aviation Defense. “We are delighted to welcome yet another North African and Mediterranean allied nation to the distinguished group of global air forces who rely on the next-generation T-6 Integrated Training System to achieve their pilot training objectives.”

The Tunisian Air Force modernization and growth program has been supported by Textron Aviation Defense, the U.S. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC), and the U.S. Air Force Security Assistance Training Squadron (AFSAT).

Textron also said that the Tunisian Air Force would work closely with TRU Simulation + Training to provide training devices and support. The devices will be installed on the Sfax Air Base in Tunisia and include ground-based training systems, an operational flight trainer, and a computer-based training lab. 

“Becoming a regional leader in military flight training excellence is one of the milestones on the path to achieving our counter-terrorism and border security mission requirements,” said Gen. Mohamed Hajjem, chief of staff for the Tunisian Air Force. “We are grateful to Textron Aviation Defense, AFLCMC, and AFSAT for supporting our acquisition of the Beechcraft T-6C Texan II, as well as our efforts to achieve territorial sovereignty and regional stability. This acquisition paves the way for additional bilateral engagements and strengthens our relationship with the United States.”

Textron said the global T-6 Texan II fleet consists of more than 1,000 aircraft and has flown more than 5 million flight hours across 13 nations and two NATO flight schools. 

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The issue was caused by the installation of a part that did not meet design specifications in some Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) T55 Turboshaft engines during routine maintenance, the OEM said Tuesday evening.

The move affects an estimated 400 CH-47 aircraft.

“The Army has identified the root cause of fuel leaks that caused a small number of engine fires among an isolated number of H-47 helicopters and is implementing corrective measures to resolve this issue,” an Army spokesperson told FLYING in a statement. 

“While no deaths or injuries occurred, the Army temporarily grounded the H-47 fleet out of an abundance of caution, until those corrective actions are complete,” the service spokesperson said.

News of the grounding comes following a report that engine fires have occurred in “recent days,” the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday evening. The potentially faulty part was installed in more than 70 aircraft, according to the newspaper.

Honeywell said it was working with the Army to investigate the issue surrounding the T55 engines, which also provide powerplants for the special forces MH-47 variant.

“In full coordination with the U.S. Army,  Honeywell helped discover that O-rings not meeting Honeywell design specifications had been installed in some T55 engines during routine and scheduled maintenance at an Army Depot,” a Honeywell spokesperson said in a statement. “It is believed these suspect O-Rings have been identified and isolated.”

None of the questionable O-rings originated or were part of Honeywell’s production or Honeywell-overhauled engines, the company said.

“Joint U.S. Army and Honeywell engineers identified the issue and are now working with the Army to provide replacement O-rings on all affected Chinooks,” the company spokesperson added.

• READ MORE: Military Training Aircraft Grounded Over Ejection Seat Concerns

The CH-47 tandem rotor heavy-lift helicopter, which has been in service for more than 60 years, is the latest military aircraft to be temporarily grounded recently over mechanical concerns.

Earlier this summer, a potential defect in cartridge actuated devices (CAD) used to initiate ejection seats prompted the Air Force to ground hundreds of military aircraft, including U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighters, T-38 Talons, and T-6 Texan IIs.

• READ MORE: F-35As Resume Operations After Stand Down for Ejection Seat Inspections

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Out of more than 700 cartridges inspected in F-35s, only four were found to be suspect, the Air Force said.

The Air Force, along with the Navy and Marine Corps, announced late last month it had grounded the fighters—along with hundreds of T-38 Talons and T-6 Texan IIs—out of an ”abundance of caution” because of the potential defect in cartridge actuated devices (CAD) used to initiate ejection seats. 

The devices are used in ejection seats manufactured by Martin-Baker Aircraft Co. Ltd., which notified Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Division (NSWC IHD) of the potential defect. NSWC IHD provides the devices for Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft.

• READ MORE: Military Training Aircraft Grounded Over Ejection Seat Concerns

“The Air Force has completed the Time Compliance Technical Directive on all F-35 ejection seat initiator cartridges, with a few exceptions, and all aircraft have resumed normal operations,” Air Force Air Combat Command spokesperson Alexi Worley told FLYING.

“Across the Air Force, technicians inspected a total of 706 cartridges, which came from a majority of the Air Force’s 349 F-35s as well as additional supply,” Worley said. As a result, four cartridges were considered suspect, and were replaced.

“Those four suspect cartridges have since undergone further inspection and were determined compliant,” she added.

• READ MORE: USAF Official: U.S. Needs New F-35 Engine To Prevent ‘Stagnating’

Concern over the possible defect also prompted the Air Force’s Air Education and Training Command (AETC) to ground 203 T-38 supersonic jet trainers and 76 single-engine T-6 Texan II  primary trainers used for Air Force Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) until safety inspections can be performed. 

Those inspections are still ongoing, an AETC spokesperson said Tuesday.

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The devices are used in ejection seats manufactured by Martin-Baker Aircraft Co. Ltd., which notified Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head Division (NSWC IHD) of the potential defect. NSWC IHD provides the devices for Army, Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps aircraft.

Concern over the possible defect prompted Air Force’s Air Education and Training Command (AETC) to stand down 203 T-38 supersonic jet trainers and 76 single-engine T-6 primary trainers used for Air Force Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) until safety inspections can be performed. 

“Each aircraft contains multiple explosive cartridges as part of a redundant system. Out of an abundance of caution, 19th Air Force directed that T-38 and T-6 operations be terminated on July 27 while our maintenance and logistics teams further investigated the issue,” a spokesperson for 19th Air Force, the command responsible for aircrew training, told FLYING in a statement. 

• READ MORE: U.S. Air Force Turns to Aviation Training Devices Amid T-1A Divesting

After consulting with the manufacturer, Air Force Materiel Command was able to identify specific product lot numbers for inspection, the service said. As a result, about 40 percent of the T-38 fleet and about 15 percent of the T-6 aircraft were pulled from service at UPT bases and Naval Air Station Pensacola for inspection. 

The aircraft will remain grounded until the ejection seats are confirmed to be fully functional, AETC said.

The Navy and Marine Corps also grounded some training aircraft that use the ejection seats made by Martin-Baker Aircraft Co. Ltd., according to the San Antonio Express-News. 

Naval Air Systems Command said it began shipping cleared replacement parts earlier this week for affected fixed-wing aircraft, including the F/A-18B/C/D Hornet, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the E/A-18G Growler, the T-45 Goshawk, and the F-5 Tiger II trainer.

“After being notified of [the] potential defect by the vendor, Martin Baker, the team used validated radiography procedures to scan on-hand inventory to verify each item was properly manufactured before sending to the fleet to replace existing CADs,” it said.

NAVAIR did not report how many Navy and Marine Corps aircraft were affected by the issue.

• READ MORE: Air Force Probe: Miscommunication Led To Fatal Crash

Aircrew safety is a “primary concern,”and “it is imperative that they have confidence in our equipment,” said 19th Air Force commander, Maj. Gen. Craig Wills.

“We will not return aircraft affected by this issue to the flying schedule until we’re confident their escape systems are fully functional,” he said. “Our instructor pilots accomplish an incredibly important and demanding mission every day, and we owe them safe and reliable aircraft.”

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In October 2020, RTAF awarded a $162 million contract for 12 of the T-6 military training aircraft, which will be designated as Beechcraft AT-6TH in Thailand, as part of a modernization plan underway aiming to develop the Thai defense industry. The contract also includes ground-based training systems for pilots, a mission planning and debrief system, spare parts, and ground support equipment. 

The aircraft are on schedule and nearing manufacturing completion and are also ahead of schedule when it comes to passing technical inspection milestones, Wichita, Kansas-based Textron Aviation Defense said Thursday.

The aircraft are expected to arrive at the Royal Thai Air Force Flying Training School between late 2022 and early 2023, the company said. The flight training school is at Kamphaeng Saen Air Base, which is located about 60 miles northwest of Bangkok.

“The Royal Thai Air Force is eager to equip its cadre of student pilots with the Beechcraft T-6TH Texan II aircraft,” Betsy Relph, the Textron Aviation Defense T-6 program manager for Thailand, said in a statement.

Recently, RTAF Air Chief Marshal Chanon Mungthanya traveled to Wichita to fly the T-6.

“Flying the RTAF Beechcraft T-6TH Texan II from the historic hangar where the entire global fleet of T-6 aircraft are manufactured was a very memorable milestone,” Mungthanya said. “These aircraft will equip our students with a significant technological advantage in preparation for their transition to advanced fighter and attack aircraft.”

News of the manufacturing progress of the T-6 aircraft follows a recent announcement that RTAF is also buying eight Beechcraft AT-6 Wolverine aircraft. The $143 million purchase announced Nov. 13 makes Thailand the first international customer for the U.S. Air Force’s latest light attack aircraft, Textron Aviation Defence said. 

“We are honored the Royal Thai Air Force has competitively selected the Beechcraft AT-6 to conduct a broad array of missions in support of its border security and its anti-smuggling, counter-narcotics and anti-human trafficking operations,” Thomas Hammoor, president and chief executive officer of Textron Aviation Defense, said at the time of the announcement. “The RTAF is a key U.S. security ally and operator of one of the most advanced air forces in Asia Pacific.”

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The crash of a T-6 Texan II in Alabama last week—in addition to the loss of an F-18 Hornet near China Lake California earlier in the week—was enough for the head of Naval Air Forces to call for a one-day safety stand-down that grounded all non-deployed units in an attempt to determine the cause of the mishaps.

According to the Navy Times, the T-6 accident claimed the lives of Coast Guard Ensign Morgan Garrett and Navy Lt. Rhiannon Ross when their turboprop crashed into a residential neighborhood near Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Florida. The Times said Garrett—an ROTC student from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor—was receiving flight instruction from Lt. Ross at the time of the accident.

Earlier last week, an F/A-18E Super Hornet on a routine training mission from Naval Air Station Lemoore crashed near NAS Naval Weapons Station China Lake, California. Luckily the F-18 pilot was able to eject before the airplane crashed.

The Navy Times said Naval Air Forces commander Vice Adm. Kenneth Whitesell announced that the stand-down represented “an opportunity for our aviation commands to focus on how to further improve operational risk management and risk mitigation across the Naval Aviation enterprise.” Ironically, The Naval Safety Center had just reported no aviation-related fatalities for the just-ended fiscal year 2020. The Safety Center said this was the first time the service had experienced an accident-free year since record gathering began in 1922.

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