LAS VEGAS — According to federal accident investigators, a civilian pilot died when a Dassault Mirage F-1 crashed last month at Nellis Air Force Base reported a flying emergency and ejected seconds before the plane fell to the ground and exploded into flames.
The National Transportation Safety Board said that no one on the ground was wounded in the May 24 disaster in northeast Las Vegas, where a witness said he saw the aircraft approach low near a runway before “dropping out of the sky” while the pilot bailed.
Hamilton worked for Draken International, a military contractor that provides tactical aircraft and pilots for combat training at Nellis and other locations, after retiring from the US Air Force after 20 years as a fighter pilot.
The plane flew too close to the runway and crashed into two backyards approximately 1 1/2 miles (2.4 kilometers) away.