The F/A-18 Hornet crash that killed Capt. Jake Frederick may forever be shrouded in mystery as the investigation into the incident failed to find any problems with the plane or pilot to explain what happened.
Frederick ejected Dec. 7, 2016, during a nighttime exercise over the Pacific Ocean as he and another pilot were practicing using radar to intercept a bandit, according to a highly redacted copy of the investigation, which Marine Corps Times obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Nothing appeared to be wrong until Frederick keyed the radio but did not say anything, the investigation found. Two seconds later, he yelled “Ejecting!”
Rescuers later found Frederick floating face-up in the ocean without his helmet or oxygen mask. The investigation determined his helmet had blown off during the ejection, but it remained tethered to his body, likely hitting him in the head and knocking him unconscious before he hit the water.
An autopsy ruled Frederick’s death an accident caused by “multiple injuries complicated by drowning.”
The investigation could not determine what caused Frederick to eject. Few other answers were in the report ― all the investigating officer’s opinions and recommendations were blacked out.
What is known is Frederick was a superb pilot with a reputation for being “more conservative than most” on aviation safety, the investigation found. His squadron’s executive officer wanted to send him to the Navy’s TOPGUN school or the Marine Division Tactics Course, but Frederick declined because he wanted to join Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 112, based in Texas, where he was originally from.
“I spent 2.5 years in the squadron with him and have not one bad thing to say,” said the executive officer, whose name was redacted from the investigation.
Prior to the crash, Frederick had flown 781.5 hours total, of which 569.1 were in the F/A-18, the investigation found. He had flown 21.5 hours in the past 30 days, 42.7 hours in the past 60 days, and 59.8 hours in the past 90 days.
No evidence indicated that Frederick was overly fatigued or anxious during or leading up to his final flight, according to the investigation.
“All radio calls from Blade 24 [Frederick] during the entire mishap flight, to include the final intercept, were clear, concise, timely and done in a calm demeanor apart from the final radio transmission,” the investigation found.
Frederick’s Hornet had a total of 6,819.6 flight hours and although he said over the radio that he was troubleshooting his flight control system before takeoff, he quickly resolved the issue.
“There is no substantial reason to believe maintenance malpractice was a contributing factor but there is no way to verify if Capt. [Frederick] experienced any mechanical malfunction without salvage of the mishap aircraft,” the investigation determined.
