Enroute controller described a military in-flight emergency declaration that caused some uncertainty...

Narrative:

Aircraft X; [in formation with aircraft Y and Z]; requested to break formation to continue into ZZZ IFR. While trying to input fight plans; aircraft X requested to stay as high as possible and wanted to try to proceed VFR. After trying to coordinate this; aircraft X declared an emergency for aircraft Z. Aircraft Y says; 'we are descending to 11;000 ft proceeding direct ZZZ.' [this was] totally unexpected. More training needs to be done regarding in-flight emergencies with military formations.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Enroute Controller described a military in-flight emergency declaration that caused some uncertainty. The reporter suggested that more training be provided for these types of occurrences.

Narrative: Aircraft X; [in formation with aircraft Y and Z]; requested to break formation to continue into ZZZ IFR. While trying to input fight plans; aircraft X requested to stay as high as possible and wanted to try to proceed VFR. After trying to coordinate this; aircraft X declared an emergency for aircraft Z. Aircraft Y says; 'We are descending to 11;000 FT proceeding direct ZZZ.' [This was] totally unexpected. More training needs to be done regarding in-flight emergencies with military formations.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Attributes
ACN	981785
Time
Date	201112
Local Time Of Day	0001-0600
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Thunderbolt II (Warthog A-10)
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Enroute
Qualification	Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Events
Anomaly	ATC Issue All Types Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor

Enroute controller described a military in-flight emergency declaration that caused some uncertainty. The reporter suggested that more training be provided for these types of occurrences.