# Incident 19970710036389I: Chicago, IL, July 10, 1997

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 10, 1997, 08:06 local time
- Place: Chicago, IL
- Airport: Chicago-O Hare International
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 41.9769° N, 87.9081° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at CHICAGO O'HARE INTL (ORD), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=41.9769&lon=-87.9081&mi=10
- Aircraft: 1MIL (not matched to a registry record)
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 3,500 total
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970710036389I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) WHILE ENROUTE FROM SELFRIDGE ANGB, MT. CLEMENS, MICHIGAN TO MADISON, WISCONSIN DURING A PROFICIENCY FLIGHT, THE PILOT OF MINT 99, A GENERAL DYNAMICS F-16, CANCELED HIS IFR FLIGHT PLAN AND CONTINUED VFR. MINT 99 ENTERED THE ORD CLASS B AIRSPACE WITHOUT AN APPROPRIATE ATC CLEARANCE. UPON CONTACTING CHICAGO APPROACH CONTROL, HE WAS ADVISED THAT HE WAS IN THE CLASS B AIRSPACE. THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDED BELOW THE CLASS B AIRSPACE AND REQUESTED APPROVAL FOR MANEUVERS AT AND BELOW 5,000 FEET. THE CONTROLLER ADVISED THE PILOT THAT COULD NOT BE APPROVED DUE TO DEPARTURES AT ORD. THE PILOT SAID HE WOULD THEN LEAVE THE AREA. THE PILOT WAS INSTRUCTED TO REMAIN OUTSIDE THE CLASS B AIRSPACE. A MINUTE OR SO LATER THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED BY RADAR REENTERING THE CLASS B AIRSPACE TO THE NORTHWEST. AT THIS TIME AND LOCATION, GROUND WITNESSES REPORTED A "MILITARY FIGHTER JET AIRCRAFT" PERFORMING LOOPS AND BARREL ROLLS DURING THE AIRCRAFT'S TWO HIGH-SPEED PASSES OVER THEIR RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD BELOW A HEIGHT OF 500 FEET. ONE WITNESS HUDDLED HER CHILDREN, FEARING THE AIRCRAFT WAS CRASHING. THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE EVENT ORD TRACON'S GROUNDSPEED READOUT WAS BETWEEN 430 KNOTS AND 620 KNOTS. AFTER HIS "PERFORMANCE," MINT 99 CONTINUED TO MADISON, WISCONSIN AND LANDED UNEVENTFULLY.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.
