Covering military air crashes

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The crash of a military aircraft, whether in the United States or overseas, is a story that demands immediate, in-depth coverage for local news organizations.

There are three types of crashes:

1. An aircraft based in your coverage area, or transiting aircraft from an out-of-town area command, goes down in your coverage area, with or without casualties
2. A locally based aircraft goes down in a distant accident or in combat
3. Local service members, either as crew or passengers, are involved in a distant crash involving an aircraft not from your area, either as crew or passengers

In all three cases, military officials and the media are looking for facts about the crash, most of which won’t emerge for days or even months. Because of the military’s policy of informing next-of-kin, it is usually three to six days before a full casualty list is made public. You also can assume that a formal inquest will not be released for four to six months. Information about an aircraft loss in combat will also be delayed by a need for military officials to determine that no tactical advantage or classified information will be revealed.

Here is some background on how the process usually works:

1. If a military aircraft goes down in a civilian community, reporters will obviously cover the incident through their civilian fire and rescue agencies, the Federal Aviation administration and other non-military government agencies. (Subsequent investigations normally fall under the military service’s legal process, requiring you to go through the appropriate public affairs office for interview requests and documents.)
2. Usually within the first 24 hours of such a crash, military officials will release a bare-bones outline of facts This usually includes confirmation of the incident, a description of the aircraft type and model, its manufacturer and number of crew aboard (passenger and crew manifests are included as an element of every military flight plan).
3. Also available fairly quickly – if unclassified – may be descriptions of the aircraft's mission, transit route, cargo and destination.
4. If the mission is classified, there will be word to that effect, but no details.
5. Other background information can be obtained through persistent inquiries: the aircraft's unit, home base if different from the point of origination or destination; the unit's normal peacetime and combat missions; the total number of assigned aircraft in the unit and on base as a whole; the unit commander's name and rank.
6. The base public affairs officer usually will have a file of historical data on crashes involving this aircraft type. It probably will list previous crashes involving aircraft from that base only. If your story requires a broader history, you will have to ask PAOs at the Pentagon or regional commands.

In the first two weeks after a crash, additional information will emerge. It will include:

• Confirmation of the name, rank and hometown of all people aboard.
• Additional operational details of the flight and mission that were not available the first day.
• Status of the investigation.
• Information about retrieval of debris and remains.
• Legal issues such as civilian requests for property damage claims.
• Indications of extraordinary command response to the crash.
• Confirmation that search for wreckage or survivors has been called off (if mishap occurred at sea or in extremely remote terrain).
• Information about military memorial services for any victims.

The loss of an aircraft triggers an automatic legal investigation. File a Freedom of Information Act request for the final report, which includes a full "findings of fact" section itemizing the known condition of the aircraft, its mission and results of the crash probe, as well as conclusions and recommendations drawn by the investigators. Included in the report will be "endorsements" by officials higher up in the military chain of command may change or add to the recommendations. Certain information – ncluding detailed descriptions of physical injuries and any administrative (non-judicial) punishments meted out to surviving crewmen – are withheld under the federal Privacy Act.

Ed Offley, editor of DefenseWatch magazine, has covered the U.S. military since 1981. He is the author of "Pen & Sword: A Journalist's Guide to Covering the Military," published by Marion Street Press. Inc.