Semper Fidelis is sometimes a one-way street

[Jarhead0331]

Really interesting article about COL Charles Del Pizzo's ejection from an F-35B and the Marine Corps' subsequent decision to relieve him of his command.

https://www.postandcourier.com/news/special_reports/marine-fighter-jet-eject-north-charleston/article_80d55e4a-f600-11ef-8ef4-03f14319ce57.html

[W8taminute]

I remember this story and all the controversial speculation on what happened.  I didn't realize that the pilot was punished for punching out.

Didn't read the whole article but skimmed through it.  I get the feeling from what I read that this fellow got the shaft so that the malfunctioning plane would not take the blame for the failure.  But it seems to me there were some obvious failures with the hardware.  Pilots like Del Pizzo don't punch out because they panicked like a rookie or were not educated enough to understand what was happening.

What are your thoughts on this JH?

[Jarhead0331]

I remember this story and all the controversial speculation on what happened.  I didn't realize that the pilot was punished for punching out.

Didn't read the whole article but skimmed through it.  I get the feeling from what I read that this fellow got the shaft so that the malfunctioning plane would not take the blame for the failure.  But it seems to me there were some obvious failures with the hardware.  Pilots like Del Pizzo don't punch out because they panicked like a rookie or were not educated enough to understand what was happening.

What are your thoughts on this JH?

Like I said in the title, Semper Fi is sometimes a one-way street.

It is clear that Del Pizzo was scapegoated. Both safety reports exonerated him of any wrongdoing. In fact, under the circumstances, ejection was exactly by the book. Inspections of flight data revealed a major electrical problem resulting in near total systems failure. He was blind and totally unable to communicate at an altitude of a few hundred feet. The one report that is intended only to investigate possible misconduct, found none, but then overstepped its purview and rendered opinions on pilot error as cause. After the ejection, he was given command of VMFAT-501 where he received outstanding evaluations and was recommended for expeditious promotion to general officer.

He was able to retire with an honorable discharge, but the removal of his command on the basis of a loss of confidence in his ability to lead definitely would have led to the end of his career anyway. Its really tragic. What is even more ironic is that he is a huge proponent of the F-35 program.

[W8taminute]

Interesting. 

Maybe due to his support for the F-35 program they were a bit lenient on him.  So they ultimately scapegoated him but at least they showed some leniency by giving him a command.  Only to take it away from him in the end.  Just my opinion though.  Only Del Pizzo could provide real insight to what really happened.

[Jarhead0331]

Interesting. 

Maybe due to his support for the F-35 program they were a bit lenient on him.  So they ultimately scapegoated him but at least they showed some leniency by giving him a command.  Only to take it away from him in the end.  Just my opinion though.  Only Del Pizzo could provide real insight to what really happened.

That is not how I read the situation. They gave him the command before the mishap. He actually took command of the post after the mishap. So, the mishap did not initially result in removal, but months later, after the reports were issued and decisions were made at the highest levels, he was relieved. This makes it seem that the removal was based on politics or optics and not based on his ability to lead or his ability as an aviator.

[Uberhaus]

Should and could have Colonel Del Pizzo fought against the report that overstepped and rendered opinions of pilot fault? The article states his disagreement but indicates no further action.