Stray Missile Pre-empts Golf Tournament

[CD]

Stray missile pre-empts golf tournament
WebPosted Jun 18 2004 01:09 PM CDT

YELLOWKNIFE - The Yellowknife Golf course is closed for now after an unarmed missile fell off a Canadian Forces CF-18.

The jet was landing at the airport about 7 a.m. when the AIM-7 Sparrow missile dropped off.

Police closed the nearby highway for over an hour.

Guy Kennedy is the assistant manager of the Golf Course.

Kennedy was preparing to open the course for the day when an RCMP officer rushed into the club house and told him the place had to be evacuated.

"While (the Mountie) was doing that, he was speaking on the radio to someone and said to someone on the radio that he had a visual on the missile," recalls Kennedy.

"At which point I went...'you have a visual on the missile?' And I kind a looked where he was looking out on our driving range and there was a missile out on our driving range. At that point I realized what everybody was talking about."

Kennedy says a major golf tournament has been cancelled and there is no word when golfers can return.

Officials from the territorial department of transportation and the federal Department of National Defence say they will schedule a news conference for later today.

 

[twinstar_ca]

i wonder if this wasn't a way to increase his handicap for the next TRIC!!!

all kidding aside, glad it was an unarmed device... could have made a hell of a divot!!!

 

[downwash]

I suppose it begs the question, why all the panic about an "unarmed" missile. Does the term mean it has no explosive/dangerous material installed, or is whatever triggering device it has NOT armed? In the first case, surely we could treat it as 'ground under repair' and in the second, move the tournament to Tuk.

 

[T-rex]

The moron who put this on or ejected it...should be held criminally liable for their actions!

What a pile of crap! Canada's finiest!!!! What a joke!!

 

[graunch1]

Gee T Rex maybe he or she should be shot???

I guess you have never had any experience around military aircraft and weapons, as things falling off are part of the risks of hanging heavy devices on the tips of very fast aircraft with temporary fastners designed to let go with the slightest hint of electricity, static or otherwise, then having these very fast a/c pull lots of G's, bounce on the ground landing and do all the normal sort of things that fighter aircraft do as part of their task of keeping people such as you free to make derogatory comments with no facts <_<

The SOP for even parking armed aircraft is to have them pointed away from any buildings etc as it is a rule of thumb that if something is going to fall off, light up or go boom its better that it isn't pointed at you.

It is just as possible that the payload was hit by lightning, the a/c has some type of design shortcoming, the pilot selected "Drop Rockets" when he should have selected Drop Flaps, its also possible that the gun plumber didn't torque something correctly due to a human facotrs reason or poor/incomplete information.

Its just a very good thing that it didn't hit anyone - unless of course it was your golf partner who was killing you in Match Play

 

[jetbox]

Gee T-Rex, a little trigger happy are we???
While we're at it, why don't we prosecute all the helicopter pilots that drop a sling load by mistake or by mechanical failure as this might have been the case?????

Don't forget that Canada's finest are only as fine as the politicians that control them. The guys in the three piece suits should go to jail instead!!!!

 

[T-rex]

Sorry Guys,

I don't sling or pack items which only sole purpose are designed to kill people or things ie.. a missle.

People have to be responsible for there actions....OK what happens if someone was hurt or killed, playing golf?.....What Sh*t happens..I think not!

Someone has to held accountable!

PS...Jet box, Don't think the guys in the three piece suits had much to do with this one!

PS ...Grauch1, sorry pal, ex military heli pilot! Know what i am talking about there ....

 

[downwash]

But, Jetbox, don't we have to carry accountability all the way? Who elected the guys in the suits? Like Jack Granatstein says, Diefenbaker, Pearson, Trudeau, Mulroney and Chretien are all responsible for the state of the Canadian military but let's not forget who elected them. I know it wasn't you and I, but somebody voted the cretins in. B)

Next argument is that our system is really at fault but, then, as I've said on this forum before, why aren't we marching on Ottawa. If it takes revolution to change the system (just ask the former Reform Party members) why aren't we revolving, or revolting, or something?

 

[MagSeal]

I'm up for a public stoning....show of hands for who else is interested????

I don't know who to start with, but we've got a good list of names going already.
(And no backdoor meetings with a few select members here who may be staging a coup against me.....)

 

[graunch1]

The pilot who had the missile come off now has a new nickname : DIVOT
poor b-tard will go to his grave with that handle B)