According to the Accident Investigation Board reviewing the Aug. 1, 2008, crash of an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle near Balad AB, Iraq, a short circuit caused electrical fluctuations to the UAV’s primary control module and other critical components, resulting in the crash of the UAV. The Air Combat Command AIB, which released its report March 5, noted that the loss of the Predator and the two Hellfire missiles it carried was valued at $4 million. The AIB could not determine specifically what component prompted the short circuit, citing as possible sources Alternator #1, the power cable that connects this alternator to the dual alternator regulator, or the dual alternator regulator itself. (ACC release)
RTX, parent of Raytheon, Collins and Pratt & Whitney, is getting out of the space prime business and focusing on its "strengths" as a maker of space sensors, buses, and components, company COO Chris Calio said during an earnings call.