"Possible Mayday by Wingman": The F-16 Down Near Interlochen, Michigan

A Texas Air National Guard F-16 went down in a wooded stretch of northern Michigan during a routine training flight — and the pilot, who ejected before impact, was talking to law enforcement at the hospital within hours.

A Training Mission Out of Alpena

The F-16, assigned to the 149th Fighter Wing of the Texas Air National Guard, was flying a routine training mission from the Air National Guard's Combat Readiness Training Center in Alpena, Michigan, when the flight ran into trouble over Green Lake Township, a few miles east of Interlochen State Park.

"Possible Mayday by Wingman"

LiveATC.net audio captured another pilot — presumably the F-16's wingman on the same training flight — alerting air traffic control: "We have a possible mayday by wingman. I believe (they) may have taken a bird." A bird strike on a fighter at speed can damage an engine, a canopy, or flight control surfaces badly enough to force an ejection, depending on where and how hard the impact lands.

Down Near Interlochen

The aircraft came down near County Road 633 and Blair Townhall Road, sparking what local reporting described as an hourslong evacuation of the surrounding area — standard precaution for a military crash site, given the fuel, ordnance considerations, and wreckage hazards involved, even before anyone on the ground knows exactly what came down or how.

The Pilot Got Out

The pilot ejected before the aircraft impacted the ground and was transported to a hospital. Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea said at a press briefing that the pilot was conscious and speaking with law enforcement. No other injuries were reported.

Investigation Status

Unlike the civil accidents in this archive, this one won't be investigated by the NTSB. Military aircraft accidents are investigated by the service branch involved — here, the U.S. Air Force / Air National Guard, through its own Accident Investigation Board process — and the findings, when eventually released, follow a different public-disclosure process than an NTSB docket. As of this writing, no cause has been confirmed publicly beyond the wingman's in-the-moment suspicion of a bird strike.

This reconstruction was researched from official investigation records where they exist, the original air traffic control recording, and contemporary reporting. The aircraft movement, timeline and written account were assembled independently by Flight Follower. Where an investigation is open or no probable cause has been published, the account says so rather than offering one.

Timeline

Accident Facts

Sources

• CNN, "Military F-16 fighter jet crashes and bursts into flames in Michigan during training exercise"
• NBC News, "F-16 fighter jet crashes in residential area in northern Michigan"
• ABC News, "Texas Air National Guard F-16 crashes in Michigan, sparking hourslong evacuation"
• WOOD TV8 / Detroit News / CBS Detroit, local coverage confirming pilot condition and location