A Taiwanese Air Force F-16A fighter jet suffered a failure of its nose gear before landing at Honolulu International Airport (HNL) in Hawaii.
Consequently, the pilot requested the assistance of an arresting cable for a barrier engagement to land the fighter. With the help of its emergency tail hook, the aircraft came to rest on its nose on Runway 4R of the airport. The pilot was uninjured.
The runway was closed for several hours as the aircraft was removed, causing delays at the airport.
The F-16A, tail number 93817, was ferrying back from Luke Air Force Base (LUF) in Arizona, the United States to Taiwan with a refueling stop in Hawaii, TVBS News reported.
The aircraft was acquired as part of the Peace Fenghuang program, an order for 150 F-16A/B-20 aircraft placed by Taiwan in 1992. The jet could have been undergoing modernization in the United States, according to the Taiwanese publication United Daily News.
Some Taiwanese F-16s have been undergoing upgrades to the latest variant of the best-selling fighter, the Block 72 also known as the F-16V. This version features improved connectivity and an APG-83 SABR AESA radar system. In November 2021, Taiwan became the first nation to reach full operational capability with the F-16V.
AeroTime reached out to the Taiwanese Air Force for comment.