Editing Fairchild Air Force Base (section)

== Incidents ==

===1994 shooting===
On 20 June 1994, 20-year-old Dean Mellberg, an ex-Air Force member, entered the base hospital and shot and killed four people and wounded 22 others.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Book|language=en-US|work=WARNINGS UNHEEDED: Twin Tragedies at Fairchild Air Force Base|url=http://fairchildhospitalshooting.com/|access-date=2018-05-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Camden|first=Jim|date=13 August 1994|title=Error kept Fairchild gunman in uniform Investigation may lead to changes in procedure|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-27179311.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911134104/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-27179311.html|archive-date=11 September 2016|work=The Spokesman-Review}}</ref>

Previously, psychologists Major Thomas Brigham and Captain Alan London at Fairchild AFB had found him unfit for duty, which resulted in a transfer to the Wilford Hall Medical Center at [[Lackland AFB]] for further psychological examination.<ref>{{cite web|date=22 May 1995|title=Psychiatrist's Widow Hopes For Change|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-23326775.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911124850/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-23326775.html|archive-date=11 September 2016|work=The Columbian|quote=Brigham and London believed Mellberg was unfit for military service and sent him to Wilford Hall, the Air Force's main medical center in San Antonio.|agency=Associated Press}}</ref> With Congressional pressure brought by Mellberg's mother, Airman Mellberg was found to be fit for military service. Airman Mellberg then was reassigned to Cannon Air Force Base where similar events led to him being returned to psychologists for evaluation. After this evaluation, he was discharged from Cannon AFB as being unfit for military service; he had been diagnosed with mild [[autism]], [[generalized anxiety disorder]] and [[paranoid personality disorder]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Camden|first=Jim|date=21 May 1995|title=Fighting Anger, Seeking Answers Fairchild Shootings Leave Wife of Slain Psychiatrist Campaigning For Change|work=Spokesman-Review|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/1995/may/21/fighting-anger-seeking-answers-fairchild}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=FindLaw's United States Ninth Circuit case and opinions|url=https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-9th-circuit/1082552.html}}</ref> 

Mellberg traveled to Spokane, Washington, near Fairchild AFB, where he purchased a rifle and planned his attack on the base. At the time of the shooting, Fairchild's hospital was an ungated facility. Mellberg took a cab to the base with a large duffle bag and foam gun case, four weeks to the day following his discharge.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gunman unleashes deadly hail of bullets at Fairchild {{!}} The Spokesman-Review |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1994/jun/21/officers-bullet-ends-shooting-spree/ |access-date=2024-06-18 |website=www.spokesman.com}}</ref> The gunman, armed with a Chinese-made [[Type 56 assault rifle|MAK-90]], an [[AK-47]] clone,<ref>{{cite news|date=22 June 1994|title=An Airman's Revenge: 5 Minutes of Terror|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/22/us/an-airman-s-revenge-5-minutes-of-terror.html}}</ref> entered the office of Brigham and London and killed both men. Mellberg continued to move through the hospital, injuring several people, and killing eight-year-old Christin McCarron. The gunman then walked out of the building into the parking lot and killed Anita Lindner. He then was confronted by a security policeman, Senior Airman Andy Brown. From approximately 70 yards away, Brown ordered Mellberg to drop his weapon. After Mellberg refused, Brown fired four shots from his 9mm pistol, with two rounds hitting the perpetrator in the head and shoulder, killing him.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Memories of Fairchild shootings still vivid - KXLY920 &#124;|url=http://www.kxly920.com/Global/story.asp?S=8368881|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090925105956/http://www.kxly920.com/Global/story.asp?S=8368881|archive-date=25 September 2009|access-date=17 August 2009}}</ref> 

A pregnant woman shot in the stomach also subsequently lost her unborn child.  After an investigation it was concluded that Airman Brown was justified in his actions, probably having saved lives, and he was awarded the [[Airman's Medal]] by President [[Bill Clinton]]. In 2016, Brown published ''Warnings Unheeded: Twin Tragedies at Fairchild Air Force Base''. The book reveals the pre-incident indicators of the shooting and the fatal crash of a B-52 bomber that occurred four days afterward.

Dean's concerning behavior was long recognized prior to his dismissal from the military.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-06-22-mn-7137-story.html|title=Air Force Ousted Gunman Over Emotional Problems|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=June 22, 1994|access-date=September 23, 2024}}</ref> During basic training, in three different psychological examinations it was noted that he should be discharged. However, he was allowed to complete his basic training and earn his uniform. After a short time in the hospital, he was deemed fit to return and requested a transfer. After his transfer, he was discharged within two months due to symptoms of his personality disorder. Psychologists after the shooting speculate that the removal of his uniform at dismissal may have been a triggering factor to his rampage.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fairchild gunman lost 'family' {{!}} The Spokesman-Review |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/1994/jul/10/fairchild-gunman-lost-family/ |access-date=2024-06-18 |website=www.spokesman.com}}</ref>

=== 1994 plane crash ===
{{Main|1994 Fairchild Air Force Base B-52 crash}}
[[File:FairchildB52Crash.jpg|thumb|The B-52H perpendicular to the ground seconds before crashing]]
On 24 June 1994, just four days after the base hospital shooting, one of the few remaining [[Boeing B-52 Stratofortress|B-52H]] bombers at Fairchild crashed during a practice flight for an upcoming [[air show]], killing all four crew members. Pilot error as a result of reckless flying by U.S. Air Force Colonel Arthur "Bud" Holland was determined to be the cause of the crash.<ref>{{cite web|last=Check-Six|year=2007|title=The Crash of 'Czar 52'|url=http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/Czar52Crash.htm|access-date=20 April 2007|work=Check-Six.com}} – Contains video footage of the 1994 crash, and details on the hospital shootings.</ref><ref name="bftck4">{{cite news|date=25 June 1994|title=B-52 crash kills 4|page=1|newspaper=Spokesman-Review|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jC4gAAAAIBAJ&sjid=F_EDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3551%2C1884581}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Home |first=Washington Our |date=2017-11-08 |title=Remembering Bud Holland. He flew B-52s. – Washington Our Home |url=https://washingtonourhome.com/remembering-bud-holland-he-flew-b-52s/ |access-date=2025-03-03 |language=en-US}}</ref>