UPDATE SEPT. 11: The mystery is building after a deadly crash involving a Nellis Air Force Base aircraft and the secrecy is also fueling speculation from military insiders about what really happened.
Nellis officials released few details about the crash which claimed Lt. Col. Eric Schultz last week.
Officially, a Nellis spokesperson said the aircraft involved was classified and no other details were releasable.
It went down at the Nevada Test and Training Range.
According to a website raising funds for Schultz, he was a dedicated family man with a wife and five children.
Schultz was also a Combat U.S. Air Force test pilot with 2,000 hours behind the controls of various aircraft. He also flew many missions in the government’s highly guarded, highly sensitive stealth fighter the F-35.
Military insider websites have speculated about what type of aircraft was involved, including the F-35.
A senior Air Force told military.com, “it definitely” was not.
The classified nature of the aircraft in question shrouds the incident in even more mystery.
The deadly crash came just hours before two A-10-C Thunderbolt IIs crashed at the same training facility. In that incident, both pilots ejected safely.
A Nellis spokesperson said the incident is entirely separate and unrelated to the crash involving Schultz.
The cause for all three crashes remain under investigation.
ORIGINAL STORY
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) -- Lt. Col. Eric Schultz is dead after a U.S. Air Force aircraft crashed during a training mission, according to Nellis Air Force Base officials.
The crash happened on Sept. 5 around 6 p.m. at the Nevada Test and Training Range, which is about 100 miles northwest of Nellis AFB.
Officials say the aircraft was assigned to Air Force Materiel Command.
The cause is still under investigation. More information will be released as it becomes available.
Two A-10C Thunderbolt IIs assigned to Nellis also crashed on Sept. 6 during a training mission. In that case, the two pilots were able to safely eject.
Nellis AFB officials say their immediate concern is for the family of Lt. Col. Schultz.
