Couple Killed When Air Force Trainer Jet Crashes in Texas

An Air Force training jet billowing black smoke crashed into an apartment complex Wednesday, engulfing one building and several cars in flames. At least two people were killed and 20 injured.

The T-38’s two pilots ejected just before it went down and parachuted onto a high school athletic field. They were not seriously hurt.

The plane, which had just taken off from Sheppard Air Force Base, experienced some sort of mechanical problem, the military said.

It was trailing smoke and pieces were falling off just before it crashed, said Renee Stephens, a witness.

“It sounded just like a bomb,” she said. “There was a big mushroom cloud and the whole building was consumed by flames.”

Witnesses said the plane just missed two schools and a day-care center before smashing into the 120-unit apartment complex four miles from the base. One of the 11 buildings in the complex was hit; four apartments in that building were destroyed.

“It took out about six cars,” said Eric Struve, who works at a restaurant nearby.

The two people killed were identified as Joseph Robert Wolfe, 77, and Edelmira Corbett Wolfe, 83, of Wichita Falls. They were visiting the complex. Joseph Wolfe was standing on a sidewalk, and Edelmira Wolfe was in a car when the plane hit, said police spokesman Melvin Joyner.

All but one resident of the apartment complex was accounted for a few hours after the crash, said Air Force Col. Bill Orcutt.