F-14 Landing at Airport Aborted

Navy officials on Tuesday were reviewing an apparent aborted landing of a Navy aircraft at Camarillo Airport.

Capt. Paul Valovich, commanding officer of the Naval Air Weapons Station at Point Mugu, said in a statement that the incident involved an F-14 Tomcat based at the Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego County.

The pilot “was making a non-radar approach to Point Mugu” on Monday, Valovich said.

“The pilot experienced instrument problems during the approach and became disoriented in the clouds. “After acquiring visual contact with Camarillo Airport, the pilot realized he wasn’t at Point Mugu. He then abandoned his final approach and departed safely.”

Valovich said the purpose of the exercise was to allow the pilot, who was on a training flight, to maneuver to an altitude of about 200 feet over the Point Mugu field, or to briefly touch down at Point Mugu and then take off again and return to Miramar.

But the pilot’s compass malfunctioned, Valovich said, causing the Tomcat to drift toward Camarillo Airport rather than locking onto the Point Mugu field. The pilot came out of the clouds over the Camarillo field at an altitude of about 400 feet and a speed of 150 knots, or about 130 miles an hour, Valovich said. The pilot immediately saw his mistake and went to full power to gain altitude, Valovich said.

The jet’s roar “got a lot of attention” from startled residents who live near the airport, he said.

The pilot, who was not injured in the incident, returned directly to Miramar, Valovich said. Neither the F-14 nor any other aircraft operating in the area was damaged, he said.