According to Air Education and Training Command, AB Joshua M. Rolfe, who died on Oct. 29, 2005, after he collapsed during the second lap of a six-lap physical fitness readiness run at Lackland AFB, Tex., had a rare, pre-existing heart condition known as cardiac arrhythmia secondary to the right ventricular cardiomyopathy/ dysplasia. In this condition, fat and fibrosis replace the muscle of the right ventricle. Medical personnel at the track tried to resuscitate Rolfe before he was transported to Wilford Hall Medical Center, where staff continued life-saving efforts but could not revive Rolfe.
The B-52H Stratofortress that crashed at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., on June 15 was helping test a new advanced radar that is key to a sweeping modernization of the six-decade old bomber.