A preliminary report found that the pilot of a fighter jet that crashed near Belleville during the Thunder Over Michigan Air Show was trying to land the plane when the backseater likely pulled the ejection handle.
The report, which is from the National Transportation Safety Board, is preliminary, and the full report likely could take months to come out.
According to the NTSB, the pilot of the privately-owned Russian fighter jet made. pass and "noticed that the engine afterburner did not ignite, and the airspeed began to decrease."
The pilot then brought the wings into a fully forward position to troubleshoot the problem, according to the NTSB, when the backseat observer said they needed to eject.
"The pilot reported that he was not ready to eject and was still troubleshooting the problem and maneuvering the airplane toward runway 27 at YIP when his ejection seat fired, and he was out of the airplane. He stated that if either occupant pulls the ejection handle, both seats eject," the report said.
According to the backseat observer, the engine was not accelerating and said that he and the pilot had a discussion and determined they needed to get on the ground because of an engine problem.
"He stated that they determined they did not have sufficient altitude to make it to a runway at the airport. He said they were compressed for time and needed to get out. When asked if he had pulled the ejection seat handles, he stated that he could not specifically remember but thinks that he would have pulled them," the report reads.
Both the pilot and the passenger suffered minor injuries in the ejection.
The report also cites video evidence showing the plane was in a left bank when the ejection seats were fired, and it continued into the left bank and descended into the ground about 10 mile south of the approach end of the runway at Willow Run Airport.
"There was a postimpact explosion and fire. The fuselage section that contained the tail surfaces and engine came to rest adjacent to an apartment building. The remainder of the airplane was fragmented and distributed along the wreckage path," the report reads.
The MiG-23 Russian fighter crashed and came to a stop about 20 feet from a building at the Waverly on the Lake Apartments.
The NTSB said once the Russian fighter jet initially hit the ground, it then traveled about 500 more feet and crashed into trees and unoccupied vehicles before coming to a rest about 20 feet from the apartment building.
According to the Air Show's website, the plane was piloted by Dan Filer, who is from Texas.
Last year, KTBS, the ABC station based in Shreveport, Louisiana, profiled Filer as part of a "Hometown Patriot" segment.
According to KTBS, Filer collects Soviet-made fighter jets and is a retired U.S. Navy lieutenant commander.
"It's the only privately owned flying MiG 23 in the world," Filer told KTBS last year.
The TV station also reports that he has two other MiG fighter jets that he's restoring and a training jet.
