Air Force: F-16 pilot lost consciousness

A student pilot at Luke Air Force Base lost consciousness earlier this year, resulting in his death and the crash of his F-16C fighter, according to findings released Thursday by an Air Force accident investigation board.

At issue is the March 14 accident that claimed the life of 2nd Lt. David J. Mitchell, 26, a Surprise resident and Ohio native whose $22 million aircraft went down in western Arizona about three miles south of Alamo Lake.

The Air Force said that Mitchell, who was assigned to the 62nd Fighter Squadron at Luke, was flying a simulated air-to-air combat "dogfight" when his F-16 went down in an unpopulated area about 71 miles northwest of the Glendale base.

"The accident investigation board determined the cause of the mishap was Lieutenant Mitchell's loss of consciousness due to not properly managing high gravitational forces while executing a turning maneuver," the Air Force said in a prepared statement.

The military branch also said that F-16 "was a total loss and there were no other injuries or property damage as a result of this mishap."

Following the crash, officials said Mitchell started off as a jet mechanic, but aspired to be a pilot when he enlisted with the Ohio National Guard 180th Fighter Wing in October 2001.

The former resident of Lorain and Amherst, Ohio, earned his commission as an Air Force officer in June 2006 then completed undergraduate pilot training last August at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas.

In November, Mitchell arrived at Luke to begin the F-16 basic flying course.

In a private service at Luke, he was remembered as a natural leader and devoted family man whose wife was pregnant with their first child when he was killed.

Air Force 2nd Lt. David J. Mitchell