F-15 Fighter Jet Makes Emergency Landing At Tulsa International Airport

An F-15 fighter jet made an emergency landing at Tulsa International Airport Thursday morning.

According to air traffic control, the jet lost all hydraulics while in flight. It used its arresting hook and engaged the emergency cable at the end of runway 36R so that it would stop quickly and safely. 

Controllers closed runway 36R, which is the longest runway at the airport, until a ground crew could use a tug to tow the airplane to the ramp. They diverted traffic to runway 8, which means airplanes were taking off and landing to the east. 

The jet was part of a flight of two F-15s based at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina. 

The Public Affairs Office at the base released the following statement to News On 6:

"...two F-15E Strike Eagles from the 333rd Fighter Squadron diverted to Tulsa, Oklahoma without incident due to a minor system malfunction. They were returning to Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina, from Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, following their participation in a training exercise. Due to the increase in age of our fighter fleet, these events are common. F-15E aircrew are well-trained and prepared to handle these incidents."

The Public Affairs Office at Seymour Johnson AFB said it will send a crew to Tulsa to diagnose and fix the problem with the jet. It didn't give any indication how long that will take. 

Tulsa International Airport is home to the 138th Fighter Wing of the Oklahoma Air National Guard, which is the reason it's equipped with the arresting cable landing system. However, since it flies F-16s, its mechanics aren't cleared to work on F-15s. 

The F-15 Eagle is a twin-engine jet used for air superiority and ground attack by the U.S. Air Force. Single-seat versions serve in the air superiority role while two-seat versions, called Strike Eagles, are used primarily for ground attack.