NASM’s VT-7 pilots identified

MONROE COUNTY, Tenn. - The Navy has identified the two Naval Air Station Meridian, Miss., pilots that were killed in an Oct. 1 crash of a T-45C training jet in the Tellico Plains of the Cherokee National Forest in northeast Tennessee. Federal investigators identified the pilots as Lt. Patrick L. Ruth, 31, of Metairie, La., and student-pilot Lt. j.g. Wallace E. Burch, 25, of Horn Lake, Miss. The pilots were assigned to the "Eagles" of Training Squadron Seven (VT-7) based at NASM. (Source: WVLT 10/03/17) Golden Triangle Note: Training squadrons VT-7 and VT-8 were in a stand-down mode Oct. 2, but resume flying the next day, according to the Chief of Naval Air Training in Texas.