American Notes INDIANAPOLIS

Built in the 1960s, the A-7 Corsair fighter-bomber has been outmoded by more advanced planes such as the F-16. At Nevada's Nellis Air Force Base, where a squadron of A-7s is located, pilots say the plane is a "dead stick without power" -- meaning that without engine thrust, the jet cannot easily be guided.

| Over Indianapolis last week, that shortcoming led to disaster. An Air Force pilot, Major Bruce Teagarden, 35, was on a routine flight when his engine went dead at 30,000 ft. Gliding down to Indianapolis Airport through a low cloud cover, Teagarden came in too high to land. Unable to circle to another runway, he tried to steer the plane toward an open field. After dropping below 800 ft., he parachuted to safety.

The unmanned jet headed straight down, clipped the roof of a bank and slammed into the lobby of a Ramada Inn. Nine hotel employees were killed instantly and five others injured. The stunned Teagarden, who went into seclusion after the disaster, implored the bereaved families in a statement: "Please understand that I did everything humanly possible to prevent this."