Air Force Concludes Crashed Fighter Pilot Committed Suicide

WASHINGTON (October 25, 1997 11:28 a.m. EDT http://www.nando.net) -- The Air Force reportedly has concluded that the pilot of an A-10 warplane hundreds of miles off course deliberately crashed into a mountainside in Colorado last April.

An Air Force report said Capt. Craig Button "intentionally deviated from the planned flight and maneuvered the aircraft to the mishap site."

An Air Force official, who asked not to be identified, confirmed the substance of the report, which is to be released next week.

Button, 32, died when the plane he was flying crashed near Vail, Colo., on April 2. The wreckage was found after an 18-day search, but severe weather at the time prevented the Air Force from doing little more than confirming from fragmentary remains that Button had been killed.

"We do know that he had positive control of the aircraft and that he had made some passes at some airfields," a senior Air Force officer said in Saturday's editions of The New York Times. "The best we can come up with is that he did commit suicide, but it was ... spontaneous."

Button's Thunderbolt had broken formation during a training run over Arizona. For three hours, Button flew on an erratic 500-mile course that ended when he crashed the $8.8 million plane against a craggy rock face at an elevation of 12,500 feet.

Investigators have said Button was in control and flying the plane. They also noted that he buzzed several ski areas and made a detailed approach to a small airport in Colorado.

The Air Force has said there was no evidence of drug or alcohol use.

Button left no suicide note and investigators have said there was nothing in his psychological profile to indicate he would commit suicide.

Button was stationed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Ariz. The pilot's father, Richard Button, declined to comment Friday.

"Ever since this happened, the media has treated us very poorly and me and my wife took a pledge that we would never comment," he said during a brief telephone conversation from his home on New York's Long Island.

ABC, CBS and NBC first reported the Air Force's findings on Friday.