{"id":30667,"date":"2021-01-21T23:05:47","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T23:05:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/01\/21\/broken-fan-blade-shutdown-of-wrong-engine-led-to-fatal-e-11-crash-in-afghanistan-report-says\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:55:51","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:55:51","slug":"broken-fan-blade-shutdown-of-wrong-engine-led-to-fatal-e-11-crash-in-afghanistan-report-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2021\/01\/21\/broken-fan-blade-shutdown-of-wrong-engine-led-to-fatal-e-11-crash-in-afghanistan-report-says\/","title":{"rendered":"Broken fan blade, shutdown of wrong engine led to fatal E-11 crash in Afghanistan, report says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A broken fan blade that led to engine failure, followed by the pilots\u2019 shutoff of the other engine, led to the fatal crash of a Bombardier E-11A<\/a> communications aircraft in Afghanistan last January, according to an accident investigation report released Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lt. Col. Paul Voss<\/a>, 46, and Capt. Ryan Phaneuf<\/a>, 30, died while trying to conduct an emergency landing of their damaged and gliding E-11A in a field in Ghazni province on Jan. 27, 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the broken fan blade and subsequent engine failure sparked the emergency, the Air Combat Command investigation concluded the crash was caused by the air crew erroneously identifying which engine had failed. As a result, Voss and Phaneuf shut off the wrong engine, leaving the aircraft without any operating engines producing thrust and creating a dual engine out emergency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The crew\u2019s failure to restart the correct engine in the air, and their attempt to return to Kandahar Air Base, substantially contributed to the mishap, the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Voss and Phaneuf took off from Kandahar at about 11:05 a.m. local time that day to conduct both a mission qualification training flight for Phaneuf and a combat sortie to support Operation Freedom\u2019s Sentinel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were to serve as a Battlefield Airborne Communications Node, which is sometimes nicknamed \u201cWiFi in the sky,\u201d to allow troops using different communications systems, both in the air and on the ground, to share and relay voice, video, images and data. This aircraft\u2019s relay capability is especially important in Afghanistan, where the mountainous terrain can sometimes disrupt communications channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flight proceeded uneventfully for about an hour and 45 minutes until a fan blade in the left engine broke free, causing major damage to the engine and its automatic shutdown. The cockpit voice recorder captured the loud bang of the fan blade\u2019s breaking, but stopped recording after that for the rest of the flight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The E-11A is a U.S. Air Force aircraft that provides unparalleled communications capabilities to coalition forces on the ground and aircraft in the air. Commonly known as Battlefield Airborne Communications Node, or BACN, this aircraft extends the range of communications channels and enables better communication amongst units. This element is essential because the terrain of Afghanistan may disrupt communications channels and it enables coalition forces to know what is around them when something is not in their line-of-sight. (U.S. Air Force photo by Capt. Keenan Kunst)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Because the warning signal did not immediately light up for the catastrophically damaged left engine \u2014 it took several seconds for its RPMs to drop below the point that would have triggered the signal \u2014 the crew didn\u2019t immediately know which engine had blown.<\/p>\n\n\n\t