ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 77495
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| Date: | Sunday 16 August 1992 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II |
| Owner/operator: | VMA-211 / USMC |
| Registration: | 164118 |
| MSN: | 195 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Kuwaiti Desert -
 Kuwait
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | Kuwait City |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
CAPT. MICHAEL R. VAN SICKLE
Call Sign: Rip Died: Aug. 16, 1992
Van Sickle and another pilot were simulating bombing runs in the desert in Kuwait when his AV-8B crashed.
The investigation found no evidence of mechanical failures and concluded that, "in the absence of any external factors as the cause, the probable cause of the mishap was pilot error." Investigators said problems with the plane's infrared navigation aid, which had been noted three months earlier, could have been a contributing factor.
The middle of three children in a Midwestern family, Van Sickle was a high school tennis star who inherited his interest in flying from his father, Robert Van Sickle, who piloted his own Cessna 172.
Van Sickle told others that the Harrier was a risky plane flown by highly skilled Marines. "He felt that most of the pilots he knew were very competent," Robert Van Sickle said. "They were just faced with a machine that was extremely dangerous and hard to control."
Van Sickle, 31, left a wife and a 3-year-old son. A daughter was born 15 days after his death.
Sources:
1. Scramble
2. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_serials/thirdseries22.htm]
3. http://www.pulitzer.org/archives/6725
4. http://www.mybaseguide.com/article/military/camp-pendleton/1147/
5. http://peacetime-casualties.findthedata.org/l/28855/Michael-R-Vansickle
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-Sep-2010 14:30 | ASN Archive | |
| 19-Aug-2011 03:28 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Country, Phase, Source, Narrative] |
| 31-Aug-2013 18:19 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Location, Departure airport, Source, Narrative] |
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