"Spatial disorientation" is the most likely cause behind the suspected crash of an F-5F twin-seat fighter jet off Taitung on Friday, military analysts said yesterday.
The phenomenon occurs when the body's senses -- mainly the eyes and ears -- misrepresent the pilot's position in space.
During instances of spatial disorientation, the plane's flight instruments become important tools in preventing the pilot from making a mistake.
Analysts say the F-5F plane might have crashed into the sea because the two pilots on board became confused about where they were after flying the plane into clouds.
The F-5F was reported missing at 3:08pm Friday during a routine training flight off Taitung. The plane's two pilots remain missing.
The jet and pilots belonged to the 46th "Imaginary Enemy" squadron at Taitung's Chihhang air base. The squadron is responsible for enacting enemy roles during aerial combat maneuvers.
Search and rescue efforts for the missing plane and pilots have been launched since the time the incident was reported.
"We will continue the search despite the restriction of 72 hours upon the duration of such action," a spokesman for the air force general headquarters said yesterday.
The air force is now inclined to believe that the plane had crashed into the sea, although it was at first reluctant to say so.
The air force has yet to find the cause of the plane's disappearance. Possibilities include human error, mechanical failure or spatial disorientation.
Erich Shih (
Chang Li-teh (
"If the incident was caused by mechanical failure or human error, there should have been calls for help from the pilots on board the plane. Nothing of the kind happened," Chang said.
"Radio contact with the plane was simply lost after the plane flew into clouds. It should not have happened since there were several sets of radio communication equipment on the F-5F," he said.
"Meanwhile, the two pilots on board were experienced pilots. Pilots of the imaginary-enemy squadron are among the top [flyers] in the air force. The likelihood of the two F-5F pilots having made mistakes during the training flight is very low since they were not doing very demanding instrument-guided flight training," he said.
"Under the circumstances, dis-orientation arises as the most possible cause for the mysterious disappearance of the plane. Combat pilots often experience spatial dis-orientation as they fly into clouds," he said.
Quoting an air force general, Chang said there is no way to prevent spatial disorientation from happening since no combat pilot could know in advance when and where it might occur.
Spatial disorientation is suspected to also be the cause of the mysterious crashes of two F-16s and one Mirage 2000-5 fighter plane between 1998 and 1999. Four pilots were killed in the three crashes.
According to the US air force, spatial disorientation remains one of its leading causes of fatal aircraft accidents.
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