Meeting a military convoy on your market run or hearing jets flying overhead is not a rare sight for residents of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. However, having a Humvee airdropped at your lawn is. That is what exactly happened recently when a C-17 testing a new airdrop system released a military Humvee from 1,500 feet, and it landed a mile away from its target.
The new airdrop mechanism malfunctioned and instead of dropping the three-ton vehicle at a stone’s throw from a resident’s house. The vehicle luckily got caught in a tree, and so avoiding any causalities. The Humvee was still suspended 30 feet above the ground when the army came to pick it up.
Such incidents don’t happen a lot, or they don’t make it to the news. However, some events are big enough to catch the attention of more than a few eyes. Back in 2016, three Humvees came crashing to the ground in a free fall when an army sergeant cut the straps joining the vehicle and the parachute. The sergeant was later found guilty by court-martial.
An Army spokesman briefed that the airdrop was conducted to test the new parachute system. The three attached parachutes were to make sure a smoother and safer drop for the heavy equipment. He further said that the test “went as planned—except for the early release.”