Was Lack of Sleep a Major Factor?: According to the Wilmington (Del.) News-Journal, the investigation into the April 3 crash of a C-5 airlifter just short of the runway at Dover AFB, Del., may have bypassed a significant factor—lack of sleep among the crew members. A summary of the official accident investigation report released last week put the primary blame on crew failures to follow standard emergency procedures and, in particular, using a dead throttle. The News-Journal reports that investigators also noted that “limited sleep” might have contributed to the accident. Retired Air Force pilots talking with the newspaper believe the Air Force should look at the C-5 throttle arrangement, which, unlike other aircraft, has no lock down position for out of service throttles.
RTX’s Raytheon unit was able to “significantly” extend the range of the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile using mostly software changes in experimental tests last year, expanding the reach and lethality of the standard U.S. dogfighting weapon, company officials said Sept. 15.
