Sierra Hotel Blog
On June 9, 1982, Israeli F-15s, F-16s, and F-4 Phantoms destroyed 17 of 19 Syrian Soviet-built SAM batteries and shot down over 80 MiGs without a single loss — the greatest air battle since World War II.
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On April 20, 1978, a Soviet Su-15 shot down Korean Air Lines Flight 902 near Murmansk after misidentifying the Boeing 707 as a USAF RC-135 spy plane. Hit by an R-60 missile, the crew managed an emergency landing on frozen Korpiyarvi Lake. All 107 passengers survived. The Soviet Union then invoiced South Korea $100,000 for caretaking expenses.
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On April 7, 1999, a KC-135R Stratotanker at Tinker AFB was catastrophically over-pressurized during a maintenance test after a technician missed a full extra revolution of the pressure gauge needle. The resulting blowout tore a 35-foot hole in the aft fuselage and dropped the tail section to the ground.
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Shot down in Vietnam, severely burned, and told he'd never fly again, SR-71 Blackbird pilot Brian Shul endured 15 major operations before returning to fly the world's fastest jet at Mach 3 and 90,000 feet. Written by aviation historian and longtime friend Cory Crowell, this is a personal account of 30 years alongside one of the most remarkable aviators who ever lived.
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On December 4, 1959, Ensign Albert Joe Hickman's F3H Demon lost power on approach to Miramar with 750 children at recess directly in his flight path. He could have ejected safely. Instead, he stayed with the aircraft and guided it clear of the schoolyard, sacrificing his life at age 21.
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