'88 5.0, 180K miles, has not been driven much at all in the past couple of years, but has been around the neighborhood a few times and occasionally sits idling for ~20 minutes just to keep things circulating.
I drove it about three miles last night, and I had to restart the engine about 40 times. It would start and die 3 or 4 times, then start and run for a block or two, then die again. No sputtering, it feels like you just cut the switch off. It has 1/4-tank of gas, runs fine when it runs, and has no obvious unusual smells. It has no preference for throttle position either, it died idling or at WFO or anywhere in between.
Once time I ran it WFO until it was well into 2nd gear without a problem, so I'm thinking the fuel pump's probably OK. My first suspicion is some kind of corrosion at the computer's electronic connection, since it sat through a two-foot-deep flash flood back in May.
I'm going to see if it threw any codes tomorrow if it doesn't rain, but does anybody have any other suggestions as to what might be causing this?
Thunderbirds accident report released Air Combat Command Public Affairs
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (ACCNS) -- Pilot error caused a U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 aircraft to crash shortly after takeoff at an airshow Sept. 14 at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. The pilot ejected just before the aircraft impacted the ground.
According to the accident investigation board report released today, the pilot misinterpreted the altitude required to complete the "Split S" maneuver. He made his calculation based on an incorrect mean-sea-level altitude of the airfield.
The pilot incorrectly climbed to 1,670 feet above ground level instead of 2,500 feet before initiating the pull down to the Split S maneuver.
When he realized something was wrong, the pilot put maximum back stick pressure and rolled slightly left to ensure the aircraft would impact away from the crowd should he have to eject. He ejected when the aircraft was 140 feet above ground - just eight-tenths of a second prior to impact. He sustained only minor injuries from the ejection. There was no other damage to military or civilian property.
The aircraft, valued at about $20.4 million, was destroyed.
Also, the board determined other factors substantially contributed to creating the opportunity for the error including the requirement for demonstration pilots to convert mean sea level and above ground level altitudes and performing a maneuver with a limited margin of error.
