Military officials released findings Tuesday, March 3 from an ongoing probe into the Dec. 8 crash of an F/A-18 jet that killed four members of a family of five in University City. “The tragedy that occurred was clearly avoidable,” said Maj. Gen. Randolph Alles, assistant wing commander, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, during Tuesday’s briefing. Alles said the pilot should have landed at NAS North Island, confirming speculation among many locals and retired military personnel. “If he landed at North Island, this would have been prevented,” Alles said. Alles and four military brass sat on a panel that included Col. Christopher O’Connor, commanding officer at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS), Miramar; Col. John Rupp, operations officer, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing; and Col. Anthony Prato, investigating officer, I Marine Expeditionary Force. Officials blamed a series of mishaps that began when maintenance logs showed the plane was at risk last July. Military officials ended their investigation with the actions of pilot Lt. Dan Neubauer and other officers who, officials said, ignored procedures, including landing at MCAS Miramar instead of North Island. Military officials relieved four officers of duty, including the commanding officer, an operations officer, an aviation maintenance officer and an operations duty officer, Alles said, adding that more servicemen involved in the incident also received reprimands. Although Prato led the military’s investigation, Rupp explained the Dec. 8 tragedy in detail, comparing the F/A-18 Hornet Mode of Flow (MOF) fuel system to a human heart. “The (MOF) fuel system’s main goal is simple — they feed the engine’s fuel,” Rupp explained, adding that fuel feeds the left engine and right engine separately. Beginning July 3, 2008, maintenance reported “a number of maintenance status codes, or diagnostic codes, for the left side of the aircraft,” Rupp said. But from July through Dec. 8, the plane flew 156 flight hours and 147 “safe flights.” “Even with the maintenance [diagnostics], the fact that the aircraft flew 147 safe flights lulled the maintenance department into a state of complacency,” Rupp said. The pilot launched the Hornet from the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier at 11:11 a.m. Dec. 8. At 11:21 a.m., a right oil caution light came on, Rupp said. At 11:25 a.m., the pilot was diverted from the ship. “It is normal operating procedure to divert rather than risk them landing at the ship,” Rupp said, adding that the pilot began climbing on his left engine. Rupp said the pilot shut down the right engine at 11:28 a.m., in accordance with procedure. But the F/A-18 Hornet was designed to fly on one engine. According to Rupp, the pilot and others didn’t read certain procedures, including “trapping fuel.” At 11:36 a.m., the pilot received a “fuel low caution,” Rupp said. “The pilot did not realize that low caution meant land immediately,” Rupp said. “He didn’t realize the increased emergency… the left engine is at a critically low state. If he landed at North Island, this would have been prevented.” In addition to the failed right engine, the MOF fuel system on the left side stopped working, Rupp said. But the pilot had about 13 minutes’ flying time to North Island and 16 minutes to Miramar. “The operations officer thought he was closer to Miramar,” Rupp said. According to recently released FAA recordings of the crash, an air traffic controller repeatedly asked the pilot if he would like to land at North Island and flew him over the naval base, offering it as a shortcut to Miramar. But Neubauer said he would try to shoot for Miramar. “I’m actually going to try to take it to Miramar if possible,” Neubauer told the air traffic controller. “I’m trying to coordinate with some people on the ground to figure out what we’re doing.” Officials said that at 11:50 a.m., with five minutes to Miramar, the operations officer on the ground confused the pilot, causing him to waste fuel. Neubauer then turned left instead of right, wasting more fuel, according to Rupp. But at 11:57, the pilot slowed to the landing speed, officials said. “He made a slight turn toward the canyon to try to save lives,” Rupp said. “It clipped a tree — the aircraft… was mostly freefalling. “The pilot stayed with the aircraft until the last possible moment.” The jet then crashed into the UC neighborhood, killing four in the 4400 block of Cathar Avenue. Officials said they immediately corrected the problems, including issuing a “fleetwide” hazard report regarding the errors, updating the maintenance and inspection items and updating their simulator models, which they said were deficient.