2015 Jalalabad Airfield Airlift Crash (08-3174)

Incident Overview and Casualties On 2 October 2015, at approximately 0016 local time, an aircraft crashed after takeoff from runway 31 at Jalalabad Airfield. The flight was the second scheduled leg of a contingency airlift mission. The aircraft was assigned to the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, and the crew belonged to the 774th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron. The crew consisted of the pilot, copilot, and two loadmasters. Also aboard were two fly-away security team members and five contractors traveling as passengers. All eleven individuals on board died instantly upon impact. The aircraft struck a guard tower occupied by three Afghan Special Reaction Force members, who also died. The aircraft and its cargo load were destroyed, and a perimeter wall and the guard tower were damaged. ## Official Findings The Accident Investigation Board president determined, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the causes of the mishap were the pilot’s placement of a hard-shell night vision goggle case in front of the yoke, which blocked forward movement of the flight controls; distractions experienced by the pilot and copilot during the course of the emergency response operation; and the misidentification of the malfunction once airborne. The AIB president also found that environmental conditions, inaccurate expectations, and fixation substantially contributed to the mishap.